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BEDFORD, N.Y. - As we draw nearer to Tuesday, November 8th, this weekend provides voters a final opportunity before the general election to get to know your candidates for Bedford Town Board.
Democratic candidate David Gabrielson will finish his first term on the Bedford Town Board this December, marking the end to what has been a challenging but enticing ride for the Bedford resident of 13 years.
It has been challenging for Gabrielson, who has seen first hand how difficult it is to constantly hold the proverbial crystal ball, assessing what resideidents not only want but also need and can afford.
If we raise [taxes] too much, then people complain. If we keep property taxes low, people who, for example, want open space, arent happy, Gabrielson said. You cant make everybody happy, and thats whats been challenging the last four years.
But the job was clearly enticing for Gabrielson as well, as he is looking for another term on the board, which means more speculating on behalf of the town. "Its hard to know what people want. And thats kind of our job, to imagine. Its to use our judgment to do whats best for Bedford, he said.
Gabrielson is the executive director for PACE Now, a non-profit organization serving as a supporter for the PACE program. It is an advocate of energy financing, making homes more energy efficient, and reducing fossil fuel.
Reductions have been at the forefront of this election, mostly regarding taxes. Being on the board that voted to override the tax cap might not help his cause, might not be the most popular thing he has done. But he did so because he knew needing the override to would keep the community from legal penalties from New York State due to the payments on the new water filtration plant.
But as Gabrielson points out, while many people might be clamoring for tax relief, he and his board have been accomplishing the feat all along. For the three years Ive been on the board, our tax increases have been a bare smidgen over 2 percent. Thats before there was even a law, he said. And going forward, Im going to bring in a budget thats at the cap, with the exception of the water district. If thats not tax relief, what is?
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