Lancaster
Four vie for two Lancaster board seats
Two Republicans challenge pair of Democratic incumbents
Two Democratic incumbents are running for re-election to the Lancaster Town Board, saying they have helped to improve the quality of life for residents.
Their Republican challengers, though, say the board has become nasty and unresponsive to residents’ concerns.
Ronald Ruffino Sr., who is running for his third term, says he has been instrumental in enhancing the town. He is most proud of coordinating efforts to have three signature clocks installed: in Westwood Park in the town; at Broadway and Transit Road in Depew; and Pleasant Avenue near Central Avenue in the Village of Lancaster.
“People really notice and appreciate them being there,” he said. “Each clock, it provides each of the communities with its own identity. They serve as a lasting symbol of something that will link the three communities.”
Ruffino, 48, says he has helped cut the cost of government, citing the merger of the Lancaster town and village police departments as one project that has saved taxpayers money.
He also sponsored a measure last year to eliminate health care benefits for part-time town board members. The change also eliminated the $6,000 stipend that board members
received if they opted not to take the insurance.
“I felt it was leadership by example,” said Ruffino, who is a vice president at HSBC Bank.
The other incumbent, John M. Abraham Jr., was appointed to the board two years ago, to fill the vacancy created when Mark Montour was elected town judge. Abraham won an election last year to fill the remaining year of Montour’s term. Now he is running for a full four-year term.
He said he has helped implement tax exemptions in the town for senior citizens, people with disabilities, and Cold War veterans. He noted that he voted in favor of eliminating health benefits for board members.
Abraham, 33, a social studies teacher at Lancaster High School, said he was part of a board that recently completed a new band shell for the town band. The board also is working on a heritage bike trail that will convert an old rail line to recreational use.
He touches on the same themes that Ruffino does.
“We’re looking for ways to try to enhance people’s lifestyle here in Lancaster without killing them on their taxes,” said Abraham, a social studies teacher at Lancaster High School.
The challengers in the race would disagree. They say the incumbents are part of a board that spends money too freely and treats residents too poorly.
Jerry Burgin, who is making his first run for public office, said as he has campaigned door to door, he has heard from many residents who say they’re frustrated because the board does not seem to respond to their concerns, whether about safety at the Lancaster Airport or the need for a stop sign at the corner.
“We have a Town Board [that] absolutely does not listen to residents whatsoever. It’s time for that board to have some change,” said Burgin, 44, the business manager at the Arts Council in Buffalo and Erie County and a former restaurant owner.
He is calling for a revitalization of the villages of Depew and Lancaster, through the Lancaster Town Board and the village boards working cooperatively. His primary focus is on making the Village of Lancaster a cultural destination, with thriving businesses and restaurants to complement the opera house.
“The town hall and the opera house need to be to the Village of Lancaster what Shea’s is to the City of Buffalo,” he said. “On Central Avenue, you have a beautiful street, but you have nothing there, no business.”
Burgin is campaigning with Georgette Pelletterie, who is seeking to return to the Town Board after a two-year stint that ended in 2001. She says she will bring accountability to the board and respond to residents.
The town is growing too quickly, she said.
“Everything green in Lancaster is going concrete. I just want to implement smart growth. Before we do any more building, we need to take a look at the infrastructure,” she said.
Pelletterie, 55, is a paralegal at Lipsitz Green Scime Cambria and chairwoman of the Lancaster Republican Committee. She is past president of the Lancaster School Board.
While she was on the school board and town board, responding to residents’ concerns was a priority, she said, and it will be again if she’s elected.
“People knew when they had an issue, I would always be there,” she said. “I would take time out to go to their home and then address it. I never ignored my constituents.”
Lancaster residents also will elect a new highway superintendent. The position was left vacant in September, when Richard L. Reese Jr. pleaded guilty to a felony charge of giving a false statement to an FBI agent.
Councilman Daniel J. Amatura, a Democrat, and Scott Phillips, a Republican who works for the town highway department, are vying for the seat.
Amatura, 61, owns Frank’s Grille and has worked for 30 years in road construction and project management. He has been on the Town Board since 2004.
Phillips, 48, has worked for the town since 1995.
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