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To The Editor:
In response to a letter published in the editorial section of the Blue Stone Press (Feb. 2) by Stuart Fraser, I offer the following.
The justification for the substantial pay increase for the Supervisor should not be done on the back of the Highway Superintendent. I have been elected to the position of the Highway Superintendent 10 consecutive times by the residents of the Town of Rochester, being endorsed in many elections of all major parties of the town, and 2007 is my 20th year of service to the town.
The Highway Department has been utilizing open bidding and receiving quotes for all purchases in the Highway department for years. This is not a new policy that was created by the Supervisor and the town board. The Highway department only makes purchases resulting from bids and quotes. I would like to clear up that all the alleged "unfettered" spending and borrowing that the Highway Department has done has been approved by the Town board. Anything over the amount of $5,000 must be approved by the town board, and has been done so for years. So all the alleged "unfettered" spending that the Highway department has done has been approved by the Supervisor and the town board.
There has been no poor financial planning done by the Highway Department. Every year for the last 19 years I have handed over to the Supervisor and the town board a request list of equipment, including prices for equipment that needs to be replaced for safety and efficiency needs.
In my opinion, responsible debt, such as borrowing money for an asset that will make money for the town, is good business. The Highway department has done this; we have investments in the equipment and material that will save money for the town. In municipal business it is not necessarily good money management to increase taxes to pay off debt, when a debt can be paid off through savings by the town as it is being used. Taking unnecessary taxes from residents is poor financial planning by the town board. The town can borrow money at a much lower interest rate than a resident can: Raising taxes and taking the tax payers hard earned money to accelerate borrowed money principle repayment is not, in my judgment, acting as a responsible government.
In the future if anyone would like to make any accusations regarding the Highway Department that I have seen running for more than 19 years please make sure you get all your facts in order.
Wayne Kelder
Highway Superintendent
Town of Rochester
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