MAMAKATING – Mamakating Town Supervisor Robert Fiore plans to stand for reelection, the Shawangunk Journal has learned. Fiore, who has been the town supervisor for the past two years, originally ran on a platform that included a restoration of fiscal discipline and return to a more open government.

Fiore pointed to areas in which he has been successful, particularly in the area of restoring decorum to town meetings and government offices. It is no secret that the previous administration had been somewhat less-than accommodating to the needs of Mamakating residents, and that there were certainly hard feelings among many. Fiore felt that he has done a good deal to improve the general tone in the town hall.

"One should never brag about bringing manners back, or being polite to people, because that's something you should do. I'd like to think that [these feelings of resentment] are gone now," Fiore said.

Fiore felt, however, that, though he has done much in these areas, there is still more to be done.

"There are a lot of things that were discussed during the prior campaign that I have been unable to bring to fruition," Fiore said.

Fiore cited specifically the fact that his administration has yet to develop a comprehensive master plan for the town's infrastructure, something he had hoped to accomplish during his first term. However, Fiore did point out that the new Master Plan Review Committee is in place and meeting on a regular basis. Fiore hopes that the report from this committee will be available in the not-too-distant future.

Fiore's critics have also been quick to point out that he had promised to create an ethics committee for town government, but he has yet to do so. Fiore stated that he had hoped to get this done early in the current term, but that the fiscal crisis the administration inherited consumed an enormous amount of time.

"We've had to prioritize," Fiore said.

For those unfamiliar with the fiscal crisis the town has been experiencing over the last several years, the Fiore administration came into office inheriting a significant debt. This has resulted in various budget-cutting measures, and it has forced the administration to raise property taxes in order to make up the shortfall. It also forced members of town government to engage in marathon budget sessions that forced other, less-pressing items to the back burner.

In response to critics who have been disappointed with the pace at which he has been moving, Fiore said that he is currently looking into ways in which he can either create a local ethics committee, or, perhaps, create a presence for the Town of Mamakating on the county-wide ethics board that meets in Monticello. Either way, Fiore said that he is still working on this, and that the final product needs to be put together as carefully as possible, so as to avoid potential conflicts of interest or the possibility that such a committee might be used in the future for purely political purposes.

Either way, Fiore feels that the current tone in the Mamakating town hall has become one in which employees can speak their minds without having to worry about whether or not they would still have a job.

"I feel that ethics have been restored to the town," Fiore said. "I know there have been arguments about certain people being on certain boards; but, we live in a country where people are considered innocent until proven guilty. If I had personally witnessed unethical behavior, I would have initiated action [against such a person] myself."

Fiore, it should be noted, has yet to be endorsed by Democratic Committee in the Town of Mamakating. And it is possible that he will face a challenger during the party caucus later this spring, the date of which has yet to be set.

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