BRAVO SANDY FRANKEL: WELL DONE

Sandy Frankel
photo: City Newspaper

Rochester, N.Y. -- This past election may not have carried with it all of the drama and excitement that we can expect for a 2012 presidential matchup. However, there is plenty of reason for Rochester and Monroe County residents to appreciate and applaud with respect to our candidates who stepped up and ran for public office.

Elected officials decide everything from whether to pave a road in your neighborhood to where you can pick your child up from school. They decide how many police officers we need to protect us and what our local community hospitals should do to care for us and remain viable.

They decide when we need new fire trucks and whether our libraries should extend their hours of operation. They make decisions about how your city handles retail centers and industry within its borders and how to care for public spaces such as parks.

They decide how to protect our communities from natural disasters and set the rules on how this area should grow.

And in times like these, they make difficult decisions about what's most important when there isn't enough money to do it all. Those priority decisions will always make someone unhappy, so in many ways, their jobs are thankless--- no matter what actually gets done or enacted.

One person who accepted this challenge was Brighton Town Supervisor Sandy Frankel. Despite being outspent 6 to 1, Sandy had the winning message in her attempt to unseat incumbent Maggie Brooks. Sandy Frankel has dedicated over 20 years to public service in our community and we have a better standard of living because of her skill, desire and strength as a leader.

Our County Executive Maggie Brooks has failed on issues of integrity, taxes and jobs. Local Development Corporations like Upstate Telecommunications Corp. have wasted millions of taxpayer dollars. Cronyism and nepotism, suspected bid-rigging and political paybacks smack of corruption during this administrations rule. Brooks also has tried, illegally, to take money from children in our school districts. Court-required repayment is has been extremely expensive too.

Frankel pointed out that past performance is the best predictor of future performance, but none of that helped determined the outcome of this election. Our problem here in Monroe County is not under performing executives and bureaucrats-- its voter apathy, and an unengaged electorate if you will, that puts people like Maggie Brooks in office. Our county government was hired by a motivated minority of voters.

Let's be clear-- in Monroe County, we do not have a true representative government. In fact, the GOP did not run candidates in most city races to suppress the vote. Voter suppression tactics is what politicians employ when they can’t win real democratic races. Unfortunately for the majority of citizens, the GOP has a stranglehold on the electorate.

Under Brooks’ reign, we have endured a net loss of more than 22,000 jobs, according to state Labor Department statistics. County tax levies have risen seven times in seven years. She even cut day care and lead poisoning prevention funding, which hurts children, families and taxpayers. Her handpicked salaried protégés have all received hefty pay raises over the years, while thousands of Monroe County workers have gone without a contract since 2008.

Brooks wasted tens of thousands of tax dollars to frivolously appeal the Martinez v. County of Monroe decision, and Appellate Court ruling that states municipalities must recognize out of state marriages for County workers who are in a same-sex relationships.

file photo: Voice Reporter

And, we are still waiting to hear developments from the NYS Attorney General’s subpoena and final details to the State Comptroller’s audit. Truth has no agenda. When it’s all said and done, history will be the final judge of the Maggie Brooks legacy. And as far as we can tell, history will not be kind to Maggie Brooks.

If anything, people should be focused on praising Sandy Frankel and her campaign team for the hard work and dedication she has shown throughout her career. They are the true heroes here. Frankel only wanted to restore integrity, trust and transparency to our local government and didn’t have the resources to get her message out to the voters. When you look back on the past several months, Frankel is the true local hero of this election cycle.

We thank you Sandy Frankel for your vision, leadership and good sense of humor. By mounting this county executive campaign, you have given a voice to those who would have ordinarily remained silent due to retaliation or punishment. You have given hope to citizens who otherwise would have just accepted the status-quo. You have already made such a difference in the lives of many working families that it is almost impossible to measure. Words kind of fall short, so we will just say thanks again. And, we say bravo Sandy Frankel, well done.