Published: October 30, 2009 10:58 pm      

OUR VIEW: City of Tonawanda mayor endorsement

Incumbent Republican Ron Pilozzi seeks a second term and has received a fierce challenge from Fourth Ward Democratic Councilman Rick Davis.

Upon a close examination of the issues and the campaigns the two men have waged, city residents would be wise to keep Pilozzi on board for four more years.

Davis has been a vocal candidate and drawn several distinctions from his opponent throughout this campaign. Unfortunately, though, we’ve disagreed with his positions almost every step of the way.

On the city’s 2008 assessments, which have caused so much controversy and spawned a lawsuit from River Edge homeowners, Davis has offered two positions. First, as a councilman, he went along with his colleagues and made what was a wise decision to contract with an outside firm to conduct the first citywide property revaluation in more years than anyone can remember. It needed to be done and, in truth, should have happened far sooner than it did.

A small pocket of the city’s wealthiest homeowners took umbrage when their assessments jumped in some cases more than $100,000 in a single year. Of course anyone would be upset if this were the case, but the fact remains, those assessments — made well before the housing market dropped — were mostly fair.

Davis has called for a speedy settlement with those homeowners. We would much prefer he stuck to his original position — the one the mayor has advocated — that the assessments were reasonable. Of course it benefits the city to negotiate rather than litigate the issue, but it appears Davis is more willing to give away the store. If River Edge assessments drop by the amount some homeowners seek, it will mean a measurable increase to the tax rate for everyone in the city and that simply isn’t fair. The city should negotiate in good faith, but be willing to back it up in a court fight if necessary.

Another issue Davis brought up in the campaign was that of the city’s grant writer. Here, he and Pilozzi offer two different takes on even the most basic facts. Pilozzi credits the grant writer with procuring millions for city taxpayers. Davis sees only a few thousand dollars had. In speaking with those who run the city’s various departments, our reporters found most to be fully satisfied with the job the grant writer was doing to help augment their allotted budgets. Regardless of the bottom line on grants (the number is surely somewhere in the middle), why would taxpayers want to get rid of a person who those running City Hall agree is doing a good job?

The final issue where the two candidates part ways is on the future of the Little League Drive property. Here again, we find Davis’ approach to be a tad hasty. Pilozzi has advocated a wait-and-see approach with regards to a potential land swap with the city’s school district. If done properly, taxpayers could receive a substantial amount of financial aid to build a sorely needed new football stadium.

Davis would prefer to build a large lot of new upscale homes on the property. It sounds nice, but that idea raises several questions. Why, when Davis on one hand says assessments are dropping like stones requiring a settlement with the River Edge residents, would we want to drive down the street to build more luxury homes in this depressed economy? There’s the assumption that developers will clamor for the opportunity to build on the site, but no proof as yet. The city council just put out a request for proposals to develop the site, and we will be interested to see what, if any, interest exists in the development community for the project.

Either way, city residents are owed a full accounting of the possibilities for that property. New homes would lower the tax rate, but they would take years to build and sell to reach maximum value. If the school district is going to spend a large sum of money on a new stadium — money that will come out of the pockets of the same taxpayers who would benefit from a housing development — we should be able to weigh the costs and benefits of both ideas before making a decision.

Pilozzi has advocated for precisely this measured approach. Indeed, he has advocated for smart, measured decisions for four years as mayor. We urge city residents to look around as proof that the tortoise can sometimes win the race. Main Street looks better. Spaulding Fibre is down. The business district has perked up, and taxes have remained mostly steady.

Then we look at the issues on which Councilman Davis has chosen to stake his campaign — and more importantly at his position on those issues — and we’re left shaking our heads. His was a promising campaign at the outset, but on policy he has shown through the course of the campaign a tendency to overreach.

The Tonawanda News endorses Ron Pilozzi for a second term as mayor of the City of Tonawanda.