Meet the Tupper Lake village board’s 2024 candidates

TUPPER LAKE — Four candidates are running for two open trustee seats on the Tupper Lake Village Board, which consists of the village mayor and four trustees. All five positions have two-year terms.

The mayor and two other trustee positions are elected in odd-numbered years. This year, voters will be able to make up to two choices for candidates in this race when filling out their ballots.

Three candidates — Barbara Denis, Susan Fitzpatrick and Richard Pickering — are running for the board for the first time, while Eric Shaheen is running for re-election to a second term after being first elected as a trustee in 2022. Current Trustee Jason McClain, who did not seek re-election, spoke in July about the need to balance more time between his job and family.

Denis and Fitzpatrick are running on the Democratic party line, while Pickering is running on the Republican party line. Denis and Fitzpatrick were nominated at the Democratic party’s uncontested convention on July 27.

Shaheen and Pickering secured two Republican nominations at the party’s July 13 convention. Shaheen received 26 votes and Pickering received 22 votes. Denis ran in the Republican caucus before being nominated by the Democrats, finishing third with 13 votes.

“Democrats reached out and put their arms around me and asked me to run with Sue Fitzpatrick, and here I am.” said Denis.

Fitzpatrick added that they agree on solutions to many of the village’s problems.

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Barbara Denis

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Barbara Denis is an account manager for Jack Henry & Associates, a company that provides software and digital services to financial institutions in the United States and the Caribbean.

Denis has lived in Tupper Lake since 1996.

“I work with relationships every day” he said.

Although his job often requires traveling across the country, Denis said he has been able to do a lot of work remotely, allowing him to spend most of his time in Tupper Lake.

“I see a lot and hear a lot when I travel” he said. “There’s no reason why Tupper Lake shouldn’t have things like clean water that other smaller communities around the country have.”

Denis says he encounters many people visiting Tupper Lake. He said most of the time they are not aware of all the attractions. “That makes it a great place to live.” He said more needs to be done to get the word out and promote the village, something he said he could accomplish as a trustee.

The rise of remote work provides an advantage, he said. “big” It’s an opportunity to attract people who no longer need to live close to where they work.

“A lot of people passed through here. We want people to stay” he said.

The biggest issue facing Tupper Lake is water quality, Denis said, adding that it has been a long-standing problem.

“This is a fundamental human right” he said. “You look at some of these pictures and think, ‘Wow, this is allowed to happen?’ ” you think.

He said the village board needs to do more to advocate for a solution.

“As a collective board, we need to sit in front of the governorship if necessary.” he said.

Illegal drug use in Tupper Lake and a lack of succession plans for when village employees will leave or retire are other major problems, he said. Denis said failure to prepare for vacancies was financially inefficient and detrimental to village services because the necessary experience was not transferred.

Denis described himself as someone who became more “public-centered” A person who has lived in Tupper Lake for the past several years. He said he didn’t think it was right to stay on the sidelines and voice his concerns.

“If I want to complain about problems, then I have to step forward and help.” he said.

Denis noted its affiliation with Tupper Lake Nursing and Rehabilitation Center (formerly Mercy Living Center). Denis said she and her fiancé, Mike Vaillancourt, formed a group last year to advocate for better living conditions after complaints from residents and their families about neglect as the nursing home’s ownership changed from the Adirondack Medical Center to private ownership.

“We are still there. “We still go and visit,” he said. he said.

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Susan Fitzpatrick

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Susan Fitzpatrick was born and raised in Tupper Lake. He spent most of his professional career with Verizon, living in upstate New York. He returned to Tupper Lake in 2011 after retiring from Verizon.

He began volunteering before becoming an employee at the Lake Placid-based Sustainable Tourism Regional Office, a nonprofit organization that promotes tourism throughout much of the Adirondacks. He works at ROOST’s Park Street information centre.

Fitzpatrick said the biggest issue facing Tupper Lake is water quality.

“This is terrible” he said. “I can’t understand how in 24 years no one has been able to fix drinking water.”

He said more advocacy is needed to ensure the state understands the urgency of the situation.

Fitzpatrick also cited Tupper Lake’s population loss as a major problem. He said his work at ROOST gave him a lot of experience that will help him address this issue as a trustee.

“We have an open door policy where I work” he said.

Fitzpatrick said he works with people “Always” People who come to ask about the feasibility of moving to or retiring in Tupper Lake. He said he gave them step-by-step processes based on their situation.

“Tupper really appeals to young families. We’re not doing as good a job of communicating that as we could.” he said.

Fitzpatrick enjoys affordability, outdoor attractions and “low key feel to it” separate it from the rest of the space.

“Most of the things people are looking for are here” Fitzpatrick said.

He said the village should do more to highlight this.

“I think you get more insight when you see and talk to people. “The village (board) is not doing enough of this.” he said.

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Richard Pickering

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Richard Pickering grew up in Tupper Lake and worked as a carpenter in the state. He said the biggest problem the village faces is water quality. He added that the financial strain on taxpayers is another major concern for him.

Pickering said being a Tupper Lake native and having a professional career — owning a construction business and working for the county in the area — has shaped his perspective.

“I have worked here all my life. I am a father who raised a family of 5 here,” he said. he said. “I know what’s going on and I think I can help.”

Pickering said he wants the community to know he has empathy for paying the tax bill. He said he knows the anger people feel when they feel their money is wasted or they don’t provide the services they should.

“I know the value of the dollar, and in saying that I represent the majority of our tax base. “I would work really hard to take care of every taxpayer that we could.” he said.

Pickering said this was an important motivation in his decision to take office. Pickering said he was not a politician. He said he applied common sense and a sense of optimism to solve problems.

“I don’t know much about the political side, but I’m very optimistic when it comes to addressing the big issues.” he said. “I have common sense.”

He said he resolves conflicts by listening to people.

“We will sit down and talk about this” he said. “You need to sit down and figure this out instead of just arguing. This world is what you created.”

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Eric Shaheen

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Eric Shaheen is a lifelong Tupper Lake resident. He owns E&M Enterprises, a general contracting company based in Tupper Lake.

Shaheen said the biggest issue facing Tupper Lake is water quality. He also said that the village administration is also on duty. “very difficult spot” financially right now.

“I have been a long-time business owner for over 35 years. I know what it’s like to run a business. The village needs to be run commercially. Eighty percent or more (of what the village does) is providing services. “It needs to be more efficient.” he said.

Shaheen added that two years is not enough time to solve the problem. He said it was the first year of his term of office. “tough,” but he was able to work well with the board this year to begin serving taxpayers.

He’s asking voters for the opportunity to continue his efforts.

“We’re working on it, and I want to be able to continue trying to fix it.” he said.

In a July interview, Shaheen said he would miss McClain and enjoyed working with him. He added that he felt he could work well with Pickering, whom he described as a “smart” man. “open minded.”

Shaheen said he felt compelled to serve on the board to speak for the community in which he has deep roots.

“I act on behalf of the taxpayers of the community” he said. “I don’t need to do this. I do this because I was born and raised here. My family has business here. My children grew up here. I have been self-employed in Tupper Lake for over 35 years. … A lot of people who were born and raised here, work here, retire here are struggling. This also concerns me.”