Ladies and Gentlemen.....This is why we have zoning codes to protect communities. How did Feathers ever think that THIS is an appropriate place for a casino. How did Langley and DeFruscio and Crist and Gilbert and the rest even think about going along with it? It's the most inappropriate location in the Capital region. And the casino attorney wants to argue that the Gaming preemption allows for all the rest of the "amenities." This idiocy must stop!!
What are the odds that the ZBA will follow the law and reject a rezone for this disaster of a project on Thompson Hill? Will they, and the Planning Board, be "incentivized" to see things Tom West's way? Do we really believe that Feathers has come this far, has spent millions already on the preliminaries, and has hired the best lawyer money can buy, all to eventually lose? I have to say I'm worried that we're going to be a casino town. They'll never stop fighting it in court, and they've got the scratch to do it. That's where the expression "He's got the Midas touch" comes from. Feathers is King Midas. Keith Langley could have been king. He could have opened this up to the residents early and made it go away and become a HERO but he chose (for ALL of us) a different way to go. I think, if we get the license, we should call it the Keith Langley Memorial Casino and Last Resort. He can then look at it every time he drives Rt 4 and suffer the pain, embarrassment and heartache of the biggest mistake he ever made in his life, not only for himself and his family, but for an entire town. And when it fails, and it WILL fail, dollars to doughnuts, he picks up stakes and retires to Florida. Well bully for him.
ReplyDeleteBonita Springs, maybe....
DeleteThe thing is that the Gaming Commission made it very clear in the Q and A session that "amenities" could not piggyback on the gaming activity when it comes to zoning issues. The ZBA will look like fools and parade directly into court to explain if they try to buy Tom West's fairy tale. Fun to watch, but costs money. Langley should never have done this to his town.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if Mr. Langley regrets his decision to embrace the casino underworld. I wonder if he would do it differently if he could do it over. I have to say that he does NOT look like a man who is comfortable right now in his own skin. He does not look like a man who sleeps well at night or like a man who is absolutely confident that he's doing the right thing for a whole town. He looks like a man who, at the very least, has doubts, like a man who can't relax, like a man who might even be tortured by the distinct possibility that the casino will fail and ultimately wind up financially sinking the town he claims to love. He does not look like a man at peace with himself. He looks more like a man who is being relentlessly lead than like a leader, like a man who is in over his shrunken business head. Do I feel for him? No. Do I pray for the rest of us? Yes. I pray 'God, help us' if EG is awarded a license.
ReplyDelete“The hyperbole used by this small group is astounding, and is used over and over again with the claims they make when discussing the issue. We have been told time and again that the casino will be NEXT DOOR to a girl scout camp and a Montessori school, and within walking distance to our high school. The casino is not next to any of these areas. It’s strange creditability to claim that it is, and only points out the desperate nature of this small group. A quick search to Google maps shows the proximity to all of these areas and you can plainly see that to claim the girls scout camp or Montessori school is next to or that the high school is within walking distance to the casino is just patently false, as is many of their other claims.”
ReplyDelete- ED Gilbert September 22, 2014
Eddie, do you sleep at night, or hang upside down in a cave?
DeleteLadies and gentlemen, this coming from our Chair of our Ethics Committee after he childishly and foolishly belittles his own residents. Welcome to East Greenbush.
DeleteJust to be clear, am I correct to understand that Ed Gilbert made this statement to the Gaming Commission on the same day the Commission examined a map showing exactly the opposite? He did this in public but no public apology? Has he been dismissed yet?
ReplyDeleteThe map was presented at about 8:15 in the morning session. You know Ed likes the last word so he was not there that early and spoke late afternoon if I remember correctly. The best part was the Board had asked questions about the map! What a dope. Perfect!
DeleteThanks Bonnie for the map and for dredging Ed Gilbert's comments up from the septic tank. It reminded me of what my wife Jo Ann said when we got home from the public comment session on Wednesday night: "If these people are so in favor a casino why can't even one of them show up and make an intelligent case for it?" Once again there was a long line of forceful articulate speakers in opposition, and once again there were new faces showing up for the first time and saying things no one had thought of until they spoke. It proves again that this is a great town and one well worth fighting to save.
ReplyDeleteThe Zoning Board worries me. I think the issue is clear and the resolution obvious but I still think they're going to rule against us. Occasionally I allow myself the fantasy that this nightmare could end on Tuesday but then the realpolitik of our town rises up in my brain and reality settles back in. I know some of the members of the ZBA and they're good people. But because so much money and influence has gone into imposing this casino on us it's hard to believe they could muster the profound courage it would take to say 'no.' I'm sure they've been told that if they say 'no' it will be in court the following morning and the town will amass huge legal costs that it can't afford. We like to argue that if they say 'yes' we'll be in court the next morning too but can we really afford to do that?
Our best bet is still the Gaming Commission and the hope that they don't grant a license to Feathers and crew. As a community we have proven to them that we don't want it and if the process is on the level that should win the day. At the end of the day, though, I don't blame Feathers or the land speculators or Kathy Jimino or Kathy Sheehan or any of them because they've only done what is in their best interests. The villain of the piece is our town board who were simply not up to the task of protecting our interests or this town. They can spin it any way they'd like but they were treated like fools and happily accepted the role. We need a different kind of elected representative and we need that now. We'll be lucky if we dodge the casino bullet but we can't depend on luck anymore. It's time for our elected officials to stand up for what's right but since they didn't, it's a lot to ask of the civic-minded members of the ZBA that they rectify the mistake. They came to make a contribution to their community but they didn't ask for this.
Jack--I have to disagree with you on some of who is responsible for this casino mess--Isn't Kathy Jimino in charge of our county--not to mention Danaher or the rest of the county legislators? Aren't the land speculators part of our EG community? Yes Feathers and Sheehan have no real conncection to us, but I am sick of big corporate/political self -aggrandizing corruption in your face people who don't care who they hurt or take down all for money. While I am very disappointed and angry with all the town board members, I don't think they're the villains or at least not the only villains. They appear to have little power compared to the county, to the state, to big corrupt lobbyists. I believe this casino was no mistake, nobody was fooled; it was done on purpose. The right thing is soooo obvious. The acting chair of the ZBA proudly said no one or thing has ever influenced his decision making in 20 years. What do the other ZBA members stand to lose in protecting their town from the wolf at the door?
DeleteThey are not elected officials. What is Feathers going to sue them for?
He doesn't get to bully or "interpret " our zoning laws. I want to believe that the corruption stops somewhere.
Anonymous 11:06:
DeleteI appreciate your response and take your point but here's how I see it. Consider Kathy Jimino. She'll get revenue from the casino, confine development to the southern part of the county, and not foul her own nest since the casino won't ruin her town. The land speculators are out to make money and this is an unprecedented opportunity for that so of course they're for it. It's like the story of the scorpion and the turtle. The scorpion wants a ride across the lake and asks the turtle to take him. But the turtle is afraid the scorpion will sting him. The scorpion tells him that would be foolish because he would drown too. So the turtle agrees and halfway across the lake the scorpion stings the turtle and they both drown. Why did he do it? Because that's what scorpions do.
Your post does make me re-think some of what I said. Andrew Cuomo is the arch-villain in the piece and Feathers and Company do need to be held accountable for all of the lying and deceiving they've done. But again, calling a casino developer a liar is redundant. That's just what they do. But it doesn't make it right.
I couldn't agree more with your statement about "big corporate/political self-aggrandizing corruption". It is sickening. My point was that there was only one sure-fire way to stop this casino and that was for the town board to not have passed a resolution of support. That's the sine qua non of this whole mess. I share your hope that the ZBA will do the right thing but I don't want to underestimate what they're up against. Thanks for your response, it is a valid perspective and another way to look at this.
I firmly believe that some things are meant to be and some things are not. A CASINO IS NOT MEANT TO BE IN EAST GREENBUSH, NY! Here's why: Andy Cuomo is taking a big chance bringing big box casinos to pristine and even a little snooty upstate NY. He knows very well that it's a high risk, outside-the-box entrepreneurial experiment, so the last thing he wants is ON-GOING LAWSUITS and hundreds of PROTESTERS with SAVE EAST GREENBUSH signs raising cane on opening day for the benefit of the mass MEDIA. No, quite to the contrary, on opening day he wants balloons waving, flags flying, and fireworks displays attracting bus loads of happy, excited, wealthy people to the casino. He DOESN'T want a DAMPER put on their casino experience by angry locals who are protesting loudly at the entrance to the casino property. Because of the ACTIVISM, if a license is awarded to EG, I will be shocked beyond belief. Feathers knows it, too, that you don't get a second chance to make a first impression with the public and that the gambling industry relies ENTIRELY on REPEAT BUSINESS. He, and obviously Keith Langley, never anticipated the strength and organization of the opposition. Even the Gaming Commission was impressed with the locals who came out and spoke against the casino. And Eddie (Haskell) Gilbert helped to make your case stick to the wall. Thanks, Ed! Feathers will get his payola out of Newberg and SOON we will all be back to normal, so proud that we won, and looking forward to a happy peaceful holiday season. As Tom likes to say, KEEP THE FAITH!
ReplyDeleteHappy peaceful Holiday season as we continue to hold fund raisers to pay the legal bills that this debacle caused us to incur. That, and the time taken away from our families that we can never get back. We should not forget what this supervisor and town board to us.
DeleteI firmly believe that this casino fiasco was engineered by some money Dems on Thompson Hill and Jimino, Crist and DeFruscio. Four or five people get to decide what happens to a stable community? Go play in the street, as they say. Even now, DeF is schmoozing the ZBA to cave to the fairy tale Tom West recited at the last ZBA meeting.
ReplyDeleteAt the end of the day, it won't matter. EG won't be chosen for a license. What will the Fab Four or Five do then? It will be right back to stable old EG where you have to work hard for a vote only Keith Langley will have wasted 11 + months on casino dreams and he won't have any accomplishments to run on except maybe the upgraded sewerage treatment plant, which is nothing right now but a huge crater in the ground. When it's announced that the license is going anywhere else but EG, Mr. Langley will be biting his nails to the quik and wondering if Rifenberg will take him back.
ReplyDeleteIt is difficult to understand why Keith Langley would condone Ed Gilbert spending so much time on such adolescent trash as they are doling out. Seems like no one immune to Ed Gilberts hatred, except of course Keith Langley and Chris DeFruscio. You have to wonder why. Even the most vile of critical blogs, invites contrary opinions to those of the host and yet Ed's blog bashes everyone and anyone except the very people who run it. Coincidence? I've submitted a number of posts asking why they can't accept a difference of opinion from theirs and simply defend their position like any leader of a town should. They refuse to post them. Ed Gilbert is vocal at every board meeting and public hearing, always has an opinion and yet he doesn't post on the blog with his name, a blog that supports the supervisor and condemns virtually everyone else.
ReplyDeleteEd your blog is an insult to your party, your administration, the people of this community and an embarrassment for your family. Why keith Langley would not publicly condemn something that draws so much negative attention to himself is a mystery. Your time is better spent figuring out how to improve this town without a casino than trying to save it with one.
Unfortunately, I don't believe that things will settle back to normal post casino. The Thompson Hill site has been targeted for development by those who care only about themselves and not about what's best for the community. I doubt our town government will allow the site to remain as a healthy and beautiful ecosystem. The various boards comprising our town government will conspire to clear the path for any and all projects that will enhance their personal bank accounts (with some exceptions) along with the bank accounts of their buddies. What is the future of Thompson Hill? High rise low income apartments? A giant liquor mart? Perhaps a prison for violent sex offenders? I only hope that we, the citizens, have the ability to regain control of the town before too much more damage is done to the character of our town.
ReplyDeleteIf we stick together things will eventually change, it's a matter of not backing down. Hopefully everyone stays strong after hopefully we are not awarded a license. I also hope that the ZBA doesn't vote in fear of Feather's just to appease him even if they are under the assumption "it won't matter, we're not getting chosen." This opens a can of worms for all future developments in that area. Back in 2012 EGV Realty proposed building condo's and apartment buildings on the property directly south of the casino (to the "right" of their shaded "red" area on the map). Not sure what came of it, but clearly that didnt happen (they still own the property).
Delete11:53 p.m. I think people are finally realizing that it's not enough to quarterback from a lazyboy on a blog, put scathingly critical articles in the Advertiser, or even get out to meetings to complain your head off in person. Politics is big business, a big money-making business. People of a like mind have to mobilize, fund raise, and get into seats of power. Otherwise, we have no power and business men like Keith Langley and Jimmy Feathers rule the roost. People think let's give 'em a chance (I.e. vote for him) and if he lets us down, we'll just vote him out. But four years is a long time to do a lot if damage. Before he's done, Keith Langley will have saddled this community with a big box gambling casino on what amounts to a beautiful meadow in the heart of our small, suburban town. Then Langley walks away and retires to Florida. I say GOOD PEOPLE OF EAST GREENBUSH UNITE! If Langley and his crew of dumbasses can do it, so can we!
ReplyDeleteI think the bigger point is getting missed. Not wanting a casino is much different than not wanting anything. Most people, including many on the hill, would not deny any landowner the rights afforded them by the applicable zoning. If it's zoned residential and your plan legally meets the criteria, then I for one would be fighting WITH the developer, not against them. This plan is simply totally incompatible for what the intended uses were. It was studied, discussed, decided and set in motion years ago. Moving in the direction planned should not be an issue for any developer, (incidentally low income housing would not apply in that zone either because it would be multifamily and it's not zoned for that either).
ReplyDeleteAs for Mr. Langley, he has not united anyone, not even his merry band of imbeciles. Four morons does not make an army. He can't build a coalition of people to fight WITH him, because he prefers to dictate rather than govern. Ronald Reagan was successful because he knew how to communicate. Keith can't publicly defend himself or his administration. He entrusts that task to Ed Gilbert and John Torino who have no ability to articulate a uniting message in a diplomatic fashion. If Langley was so positive about this project and it was so good, he'd be asking to be on talk radio, writing articles praising the positive benefits and winning over those opposed. Those opposed are not wrong because the zoning law is on their side. They took the attitude this was a done deal from early on and have not had the brains to re-evaluate the situation based on the law, the facts and the people they represent. If Feathers gets nothing in this race, no license at all, what has he lost? He goes back to a multi million dollar enterprise and a nice lifestyle. What has Langley and company gained at that point but the contempt of their neighbors. Sometimes it's more noble to accept defeat willingly than go down fighting for a lost cause. Here's an FYI for Langley, Gilbert and his team, if East Greenbush gets awarded a license and still has to go to court, it's a winning case for the opposition. At that point, the other applicants are prepared to fund the law suit and the license will ultimately go elsewhere anyway. If you're going to lead a conspiracy, at least look at it from both sides. Feathers has a lot of money, but he doesn't have ALL of it!
This is priceless folks. At the Location Board hearing a couple of weeks ago, Elizabeth Wade used a map similar to the one at the top of this Post in her comments to the Board. The Board took good note of it and asked questions about it. They were aware of its content. Toward the end of the day, our Dep Supe and "Ethics" Chair got up and made the statement in the YouTube link below. Liar and Fool come to mind.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e7tRwiSCkHw&app=desktop
I find it comical and pathetic that residents are being ridiculed for being "NIMBYS" and being concerned about a casino in their community with their loved ones. Yet then the residents are ridiculed for being out of towners. So according to our Ethics chairman who is doing the ridiculing, youre not allowed to have an opinion if you live near the proposed site and you are certainly not allowed to have an opinion if you are from another town. Its ironic he calls the residents dissidents, the term is primarily used when discussing authoritarian governments. Pretty fitting Ed. Its also sad that the ethics chairman is mocking his residents for having a moral stand on the casino. Just sad Ed, very sad.
DeleteHe is absolutely crazy! Forgetting the fact anyone can look at a map and disclaim his far fetched cries, why he honestly said that the schools and girl scout's camp is not near the site is beyond me. Why he brought up GlobalFoundries is even more beyond me. They required a lot of space, they currently own over 200 acres at Luther Forest (he's obviously never taken a ride there, there is nothing about that facility that remotely resembles anywhere in East Grenbush that could have accomadated them). Not to mention, while GlobalFoundaries has provided hundreds of great jobs, they have receved over a billion dollars in incentives from the state, over a half a billion in cash grants from the state and over a half a billion in tax breaks and is expected to receive another billion. The cash grant given to GlobalFoundaries was not only the largest in NY history, but largest in US history. What do these cash incentives mean for NY? Not money in our pocket, in fact I read a few years ago that this cash deal will cost NY taxpaers over $20 million a year for the next 20+ years to pay off this debt (bonds were issued by Empire Development Corp.) Welcome to economics Ed, I also read in one of your wonderful blogs (how does it feel to be shut down by the Capital's largest newspaper?) that the argument of supply and demand don't hold in the casino debacle, ED - a 4th grader understands supply and demand! Time to go back to business 101.
DeleteThe vacant lots that represent what used to be trees and wildlife are not even in East Greenbush neither, please Ed tell me how the SEG group is responsible for that? Someone put something extra in his koolaid!
Fallen from grace comes to mind, after viewing the YouTube video. A member of the Ethics Committee should not be puplicly trashing EG residents. It's not the duty of the Deputy Supervisor to do it either. I say HOGWASH, and turn in your salary, Ed.
ReplyDeleteI viewed the YouTube video as well. As usual, Ed Gilbert presents himself as a would-be politician who, at the same time, comes across as the complete antithesis of a politician, much like his boss, Keith Langley. As Ed spoke very disparagingly about the opposition to this extremely controversial project, opposition who also happen to be voting residents of the town, his breathing was audibly labored, you could almost hear his heart pounding in his chest, and he spoke so fast one would have thought he had to catch a CDTA bus. I had to wonder if even he believed the nonsense he was speaking. I also wonder just how far Ed Gilbert will go to serve Keith Langley, a man-child who seems more than okay with letting poor, over-eager Ed take it in the neck for him. Has Ed no regard at all for what his association with Keith Langley et al is doing to HIS reputation in the town? Apparently not. Ed is also purported to be the blog master of the infantile and nonsensical EGMATTERS blog while at the same time Chairman of the Ethics Board? Talk about disturbing. The political culture in the Langley camp is now so toxic and so dysfunctional that we all have much to fear between now and election day 2015. And these are the officials who are presiding over the casino deal, the largest project in the history of the town? Again, disturbing. All we can do at this point is hope and pray that the ZBA does their job professionally and honorably. Mr. Langley needs to come back down to earth and wake up from these ridiculous casino dreams that are causing our town to be one big nightmare. So, wake up, Ed. Blaze your own trail and, for heaven's sake, stop taking it in the neck for Keith Langley. He's really enjoying the show too much.
DeleteI knew Ed Gilbert when he was a regular guy. Ed's affiliation with Keith Langley has changed him, and not for the better. Now, he is Feathers and Langley's attack dog and making a complete and utter fool of himself in the process. What's difficult to understand is that Ed's an accomplished guy. Why he has hitched his star to Keith Langley, we will never know. He can't possibly believe there is any future in it for him. In fact, many think he has brought himself down to an all time low. Ed has become like the watchmen in the crows nest who refuses to believe the ship is headed for an iceberg, so he obstinately stays the course and says nothing. Big mistake, Ed! Big, big, BIG mistake.
DeleteBonnie, you are so right. It doesn't matter anymore Republican/Democrat/Conservative/ Liberal. Its right and wrong and some of these people are just so wrong
DeleteParties should be eliminated, they have nothing to do with the mess our town or state are in. Parties have created ridiculous campaign ads that pits one side against another. It's about the individual, not what box they check "republican" or "democrat." Like @1:45 said, it doesn't matter the party affiliation, in this particular case it's a simple matter of right vs wrong like @1:45 said, and many individuals from different party affiliations have been "wrong." Their process and attitude has been seriously compromised and I don't think for some there is any coming back from the actions they have taken over the last several months. True colors have been shown, and there's no going back.
Delete7:55 a.m. you seem to be suggesting that Mr. Gilbert can salvage what's left of his reputation by separating from the Langley camp. No, no. What's done is done. He's Langley's deputy, guilty by association, word and deed, and if the taxpayers have anything to say about it he WILL go down with the ship whether he rids himself of the stink of Keith Langley or not.
ReplyDelete