Plattsburgh Mayor Colin Read Discusses Decision To Run For Re-Election

Plattsburgh, New York Mayor Colin Read has had a somewhat tumultuous first term. Protesters opposed to downtown redevelopment plans gather every Thursday during city council meetings outside City Hall.  There’s been a rocky relationship with the adjacent town after the city filed a lawsuit over a 1992 PILOT agreement.  Mayor Read is also attempting to annex 224 acres of town land. Early in his four-year term, Read and a city councilor were caught on tape making controversial comments and the mayor’s first budget eliminated four city departments.  
Despite the hurdles, last week Mayor Colin Read let it be known that he will run for a second four-year term next year.  The Democrat tells WAMC’s North Country Bureau Chief Pat Bradley that he hopes to stay in office until the city’s fiscal foundation is stable.
 “I don’t think the city’s in firm enough financial foundation to be able to sustain itself. I think we’ve got another few years of work and I’ve always maintained that I’ll continue to do this until I’m very confident that the city’s not going to fall into the traps of the past. That it’s got a got a good strong structural fiscal balance where revenues on average each year are going to  exceed expenses. I don’t want to see the days of $1.2 million deficits each and every year until the fund balance goes from $6.8 million to the $0  in essence we inherited. Mind you I also qualify that statement. If there’s somebody more qualified who could do a better job and be even more vigilant I’ll certainly welcome that.  All I care about is the success of the city.”