LETTER from RICHARD STERNBERG
Trustee Backs Colleagues
In March 18 Village Polling
To the Editor:
I endorse and urge you to go out and vote for Mayor Ellen Tillapaugh and Trustee MacGuire (Mac) Benton for re-election and Trustee Joe Membrino for election to the Cooperstown Village Board. I have worked with all of them on the board, on village committees and other boards, and in other endeavors, and they have all been selfless in their positions, working for the best interest of the entire Cooperstown community.
The election is noon-9 p.m. Wednesday, March 18, at the firehall.
Mayor Tillapaugh has worked tirelessly to continue our spectacular infrastructure improvement, getting it paid
for mostly with grants, and without a tax increase, something that began with former Mayor Jeff Katz. She was born here and has lived in Cooperstown most of her life. She brings an institutional memory to decision making to the Board members’ discussions.
I have worked on many projects with Mac and am impressed with his energy, eagerness to learn, and how much he cares about Coopers-town, where he has lived all of his life. Mac has put forwarded initiatives that have earned 100 percent Board support, something rare for a freshman Trustee. I have seen him lead and develop various groups of civic minded individuals, many of them young like himself. He has worked a full time and part time job while putting in many hours a week into his Trustees’ duties. He brings needed youth to the Board and represents the future of Cooperstown government.
I have worked with Joe Membrino first on the Planning Board in 2015 and then on the Board of Trustees and Finance and Personnel committees since 2019. He is a lawyer and a dedicated public servant who brings the knowledge of a long
career in government service to the table. In the Trustees’ deliberations, he is thoughtful, pragmatic, and straightforward.
He has very diligently and exhaustively reviewed all the documents presented to him and carefully reviewed all 1,000+ line items in the 2020-21 budget frequently raising important questions.
The Village has definitely been continuing to move in the right direction over the last decade. It has increased spending by 100 percent while keeping real estate taxes to its citizens flat. For this we have Mayor Tillapaugh and the other dedicated Board members like Mac and Joe to thank and I urge you to vote to keep them.
RICHARD STERNBERG, M.D
Village Trustee
Cooperstown