Ginsberg's Project: it doesn't fit

Below (click "read more") is the short version of all that is wrong with this project. Here is the more detailed version.

Free land, free money, variances that allow the company to flaunt the zoning laws: this deal is bad and there is a meeting tonight.

Then, another: Wednesday, September 17, at the Ghent firehouse at 10 AM. Very important meeting for all Columbia County residents.

Also, I never did blog the payroll meeting but this article is damn good.

Let your voice be heard at both. Read more.

Crony Capitalism at its Worst

Below I offer more details on this sorry Ginsberg deal. Here is the shorter version. Meeting tonight.

Wednesday, Sept. 10th at 7pm at Ghent Town Hall

"PLEASE TAKE NOTICE THAT the Zoning Board of Appeals of the Town of Ghent will hold a regular meeting on 9/10/2014 at 7pm at the Town Hall, 2306 Route 66, Ghent, NY at which time the applications by Ginsberg/Crawford & Associates for variances/code interpretation will continue to be reviewed."

Report from the Columbia Paper from the last ZBA meeting "Ghent Residents give freezer plan frosty critique"

public trust?

From the audit:

Payroll Department on November 14, 2013 via email identifying 37 leave days to be deducted from the resigning attorney’s accruals, the email was not opened before the separation payment was issued on November 21, 2013. 

It should be noted that we found the discrepancies in this department because it was the only department that had sufficient records to test. Such records consisted of leave request forms and an electronic calendar that documented daily absences. 

The public trust is endangered when records of leave time earned and used are not maintained and separation payments made are not fully supported. 

What do 26 hour days do to public trust? How about 5 guys maintaining private law offices with staff while simultaneously claiming to be present at 401 State Street for years when they don't have desks at 401 State and never went there?

Grattan is obliged by law to deal with this by law and can't say "whoops!." If crimes were committed, hundreds of felonies for years by many people, the DA has an obligation to prosecute and the state police have an obligation to arrest.

comptroller audit meeting tomorrow

Special meeting of BOS 9/4/14, 5:30pm, to review Columbia County Payroll Audit

 NOTICE OF SPECIAL MEETING OF THE BOARD OF ... 2014 at 5:30 pm in the Board of Supervisors Chambers located at 401 State Street, ...

Here is an interesting passage from the audit: