Island Dispatch, 2005-05-06

              Island Dispatch Niagara Frontier Publications prot/d publishers of Island Dispatch lewiston-Porter Sentinel Grand Island Penny Saver Niagara-Wheatfield Tribune www.wnypapers.com For Home Delivery of the Island Dispatch Call 773-7676 V01.61 No. 7 May 6,2005 28 Pages "*l.OO Students Stage Benefit j page 13* Islanders Sweep Hewitt Awards | page 17 "I am so very grateful and deeply touched by the immense generosity the Grand Island * community and its neighbors have shown to Gene and me in supporting "Christine's Garden of Hope." Christine Ryshkus Page 4 Swanick's swan song 25-year legislator won't run again by Karen Keefe Chuck Swanick is calling it quits after a quarter century as Grand Island's Erie County legislator.Swanick announced Thursday he will not be running for a 14th term, in the wake of a fiscal nightmare that already has ended the careers of two other lawmakers who decided not to run for »e-election. An Effective Lawmaker "We are going to lose someone who is very effective, very popular and worked very hard for Grand Island," commented Town Supervisor Peter A. McMahon upon hearing the news. "Whatever he decides to do, I wish him the best," McMahon said. Reports indicated Swanick's recent absences from county meetings were in part due to his attendance at a railroad engineer training school. He was a Conrail engineer prior to winning his first term in 1979. Swanick indicated he is not sure if he would return to that career. Incumbents Vulnerable "Most of the current legislators are going to have a hard time," McMahon said. "The financial situation is going to be a problem for any incumbent." Even as the county budget mess was beginning to crest last fall, Swanick told the Dispatch that state mandates - specifically soaring Medicaid costs - were the crux of the problem. county legislators voted down the "Medicaid Penny" that County Executive Joel Giambra wanted to tack on to the sales tax to save jobs and services. Then the layoffs began ~ numbering close to 1,500 - the parks closed, and county services continue to suffer. Now that financial problem has claimed another job, in Swanick's decision to step down in December. Despite the controversy, few would deny that Swanick had a deep understanding of the forces that brought the county to its knees, financially. He could talk numbers and financial projections with ease and clarity. But he and his colleagues, ultimately, were unable to find a revenue stream that did not depend on digging deeper into their constituent's wallets. Political Controversy Swanick, 56, endured his share of political controversy Charles Swanick has decided against another run for county legislator after 25 years in office. Candidates tackle tough budget issues by Karen Keefe Tax bills, class sizes and teachers' benefits topped the list of discussion items at the School Board Candidates Night, this past Monday at Connor Middle School. The public had its first chance to hear how the candidates vying for two board seats would deal with the same problems current board members wrestle with on a regular basis. As Myrna Blair, Bryan Flynn arid Richard Little fielded written questions from the audience,audience, differences in viewpoints were slight and the agreements were plentiful. The public will choose two of the three to represent them on the board, come Tuesday, May 17. That budget and trustee vote takes place from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the high school gym. All three had a chance to answer each question. The rule was two minutes per response, then an additional minute, if desired. Candidate Profiles Blair is an accountant and formerformer math teacher who previously served on the School Board from 1996 to 2004; Flynn is a Global Studies teacher at JFK -High School in Cheektowaga who formerly taught at Grand Island High School; and Little is a project manager for BHNT Architects. All support the current board's $43.2 million spending plan, with its 2.8 percent increase in the tax rate. That proposal also is up for a vote on May 17. Tax Rate Increase All agreed that it is hard to put a number on what is an acceptable increase, if any, in the tax rate. Little said it this way: "Each situation has to be evaluated based on the changes every year. You've got mandates that need to be funded." As a board member he said you have to project the district's needs and, realizing that every year, things cost more, "Make it as reasonable as you can." Class Size The three candidates also concurred that when it comes to class size; as Blair said, "smaller is better." "The perfect class size would be 24 or 25 students," Flynn said. But he added, "There's nothing wrong with having larger class sizes than that," if all things were equal. He said the real problem is that in today's classes, everybody is not at the same ability level. "Unfortunately, you cannot teach to every single student in a classroom like that on a daily basis." He said it is important that lpwer-achieving students receive the one-on-one assistance they need. Little believes the lower the grade, the smaller the class size should be. Special id When it comes to academically at-risk students, the candidates said special help, smaller classes and testing modifications can raise scores on state exams. Blair, the mother of a learning-disabled son, said, "There are some children who are never going to make a Regents diploma." Flynn agreed, and said, "You find areas they are going to achieve in and help them to the best of their ability." Fiscal Mismanagement Blair, Flynn and Little agreed that avoiding wasteful spending and fiscal mismanagement in the school district requires From left, School Board candidates Richard Little, Myrna Blair and Bryan Flynn answered questions from the public at a Candidates Night on Monday at Veronica Connor Middle School. There are two seats up for election in the budget and trustee vote on Tuesday, May 17 from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the high school gym. continued on page 2 continued on page 2 Monday Nite Madness LARGE CHEESE PIZZA $*T59 M plus tax (_______llD 2131 Grand Island BJvd. 153 The Commons 4 Bed. 2 112 Bath. \ \ SS 'f ' 11 • ;. ' j MODEL HOME Bob Monaco RealtyUSA 773-4637