To the Editor,
The best times in government occur when a great idea which has been long in its planning finally comes to fruition. We are extremely fortunate in Copake to be experiencing two such moments. Not only is the Town Board ready to consider the Comprehensive Plan, which has been three plus years in the making, but this past week saw the start of the placement of the solar panels on the Parks and Recreation Building. First of all I wish to thank Jeanne Mettler who took what began as a somewhat contentious Town Board process and brought together a wonderful composite of people. To all of you who served on the Comprehensive Planning Committee, who diligently met a minimum of twice monthly for three plus years, the reward of your labors is in our hands and I wish to express gratitude for all your efforts. I am also excited at the prospect of being involved in implementing this vision for Copake in the coming years; a vision for which you have built the framework. It doesn't get much better than this.
The other moment of note also began in 2008 when I returned from a grant seminar at the Roosevelt Library and committed with Councilman Tompkins to diligently working to make solar panels on the Park Building and Town Hall a reality. Throughout the process there have been many phone calls, ups and downs, grant writing sessions, and meetings. Never once did either of us believe we would fail, and one of the nice things about working so closely with a colleague is that at any given point in time one or the other can step forward to keep things moving. Over this extended period of time both Dan and I alternately shouldered the burden of keeping things on track, whether it be making certain we hit deadlines or finding the answers to any question which might possibly be asked by those who had concerns about this project. While the journey has been long, the process was always a pleasure and to have been a participant in making something happen which will benefit the entire town is quite rewarding.
An additional reward of the solar panel process was the role it served in bringing the Town Board together. Much as Jeanne brought together a disparate group of people to produce a cohesive and unified final document, Dan and I were able to find the common ground needed to move things forward. Bi-partisanship is a reward in and of itself, and so I would particularly like to take this point in time to thank my colleague Dan Tompkins for reaching out. Together we discovered that in reality our commonalities far exceeded our differences and that once a dialogue is begun about one subject then other discussions about other topics will soon follow. By discovering not only that we worked well together, but that we actually enjoyed working together, it became possible to accomplish much more than would have otherwise been possible in what was once a divided Town Board. So I thank my colleague, my friend Dan Tompkins for the positive experience working with him has been and for working with me to bring positive change to Copake. Your presence on the Town Board will be missed next year, Dan.
It truly takes people willing to come together, to listen to each other and to compromise to make things happen. I am grateful to have been able to be a part of this dynamic and am looking forward to all that we the people of Copake will accomplish in the coming years. It's an exciting time to be a part of local government and I am thankful for the six years of experience on the Town Board which I can now utilize in continuing this process of setting and reaching positive goals for Copake. As I said before, it doesn't get much better than this.
Linda Gabaccia
No comments:
Post a Comment