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Grattan challenges K'hook Supervisor McGivney
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| Pat Grattan |
By Francesca Olsen
Hudson-Catskill Newspapers
Pat Grattan, a private practice attorney who also is counsel for the village of Valatie, has thrown his hat in the ring for Kinderhook supervisor. The registered Republican is endorsed by the Republican, Conservative and Independence parties.
Grattan is not new to politics, having been a mayor in Valatie from 1991-1997, as well as a Valatie village trustee and Kinderhook town board member, budget officer and deputy supervisor. He says the most important issue facing Kinderhook is “providing municipal services in a cost-effective manner.”
“It’s a good time for me to run,” Grattan said. “I think my presence at the town and county level will help.”
Grattan said the concept of sharing services with other municipalities has been “underutilized” in Kinderhook. “Whether it’s in the form of sharing equipment or sharing people, bidding for things together isn’t a new thing,” he said, citing a Kinderhook/Valatie merger for highway services that occurred when he was Valatie mayor that he said resulted in lower taxes for both towns.
Independent living for seniors, and access to useful health care information, is a goal Grattan hopes to achieve at the county level. Medicaid costs are going up, and seniors would like to live independently, at home, as long as possible. Grattan said the county “needs to make people aware of these programs” and to participate in NY CONNECTS, a local information/assistance system that provides people with information when they need to make important decisions about health care.
“In Columbia County, we really value our independence,” he said. “People like to have choice, which is good, and I’d really like to see the county work hard to establish NY CONNECTS.”
Grattan also says he wants to promote small business within Kinderhook, and support existing small business. On the county level, he thinks the supervisors need a small business committee, and start getting feedback on how to effectively promote small business.
“Look at the big picture. Wal-Mart doesn’t really care,” he said. “(Small businesses) value their reputation. They’re not going to do well if they’re not providing good services.”
Concerning Pine Haven, Grattan said he agreed with the county’s decision to build on the existing property in Philmont. “What we can’t miss is that somehow, there’s been a tremendous loss of local employment,” he said. “Those are good jobs! To pull that out of the community and to displace 150 people...there’s a cost to that. That would have been devastating to the businesses in Philmont. We’ve never had (Pine Haven) before, so we’re not missing out on it.”
On the subject of the county’s purchase of the Ockawamick school building in Claverack, Grattan said, “I think it was bought first, before there was a plan.”
“If there’s one lesson we learn, it’s very costly. I’m not sure it’s cost effective to take an old building and renovate it.” Grattan cited the endless maintenance common with old buildings, as well as the lack of handicap accessibility.
Also, moving DSS out of Hudson would have resulted in an economic impact for everyone doing business in the city, Grattan said. “The money that’s spent in the community goes back to pay taxes and services,” he said. “It was very poorly thought out, and there was no consultation with the local officials.”
Grattan is not new to politics, having been a mayor in Valatie from 1991-1997, as well as a Valatie village trustee and Kinderhook town board member, budget officer and deputy supervisor. He says the most important issue facing Kinderhook is “providing municipal services in a cost-effective manner.”
“It’s a good time for me to run,” Grattan said. “I think my presence at the town and county level will help.”
Grattan said the concept of sharing services with other municipalities has been “underutilized” in Kinderhook. “Whether it’s in the form of sharing equipment or sharing people, bidding for things together isn’t a new thing,” he said, citing a Kinderhook/Valatie merger for highway services that occurred when he was Valatie mayor that he said resulted in lower taxes for both towns.
Independent living for seniors, and access to useful health care information, is a goal Grattan hopes to achieve at the county level. Medicaid costs are going up, and seniors would like to live independently, at home, as long as possible. Grattan said the county “needs to make people aware of these programs” and to participate in NY CONNECTS, a local information/assistance system that provides people with information when they need to make important decisions about health care.
“In Columbia County, we really value our independence,” he said. “People like to have choice, which is good, and I’d really like to see the county work hard to establish NY CONNECTS.”
Grattan also says he wants to promote small business within Kinderhook, and support existing small business. On the county level, he thinks the supervisors need a small business committee, and start getting feedback on how to effectively promote small business.
“Look at the big picture. Wal-Mart doesn’t really care,” he said. “(Small businesses) value their reputation. They’re not going to do well if they’re not providing good services.”
Concerning Pine Haven, Grattan said he agreed with the county’s decision to build on the existing property in Philmont. “What we can’t miss is that somehow, there’s been a tremendous loss of local employment,” he said. “Those are good jobs! To pull that out of the community and to displace 150 people...there’s a cost to that. That would have been devastating to the businesses in Philmont. We’ve never had (Pine Haven) before, so we’re not missing out on it.”
On the subject of the county’s purchase of the Ockawamick school building in Claverack, Grattan said, “I think it was bought first, before there was a plan.”
“If there’s one lesson we learn, it’s very costly. I’m not sure it’s cost effective to take an old building and renovate it.” Grattan cited the endless maintenance common with old buildings, as well as the lack of handicap accessibility.
Also, moving DSS out of Hudson would have resulted in an economic impact for everyone doing business in the city, Grattan said. “The money that’s spent in the community goes back to pay taxes and services,” he said. “It was very poorly thought out, and there was no consultation with the local officials.”
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