Hold local elected officials accountable to see real change in Orleans County

Editor:

Gary Deiboldt’s recent letter is a microcosm of everything wrong with political debate in Orleans County and, to a large extent, the country. The propensity to attack the messenger and twist the message while ignoring the real issues.

In Mr. Deibolt’s case, he asks, “If things are so great in Orleans County, why did he move to Oakfield?”

Nowhere did I even imply things were “great” in Orleans County, but even if I did, why I moved has nothing to do with property taxes or AIM funds.

I will illustrate my point by noting the fact that my sister and brother-in-law recently moved to Batavia from Savannah, Georgia. In the case of my brother-in-law, he lived in Georgia for over seven decades, and my sister was in Georgia for almost 40 years.

Did they move to Western New York because of the great weather and low property taxes? No, they moved to be closer to family, which is exactly what I did, albeit my move was far less drastic.

I had to move because my children, who grew up in the Village of Albion, moved away. Why? Because like many young people from Orleans County, they chose to go to an area where they had a better opportunity to make a living.

Their education from Albion prepared them for college, and both have four-year degrees, and have been tax-paying, productive citizens, so while Mr. Deiboldt implies that funds for schools are used for frivolous items and “pet projects,” investment in education is the best use of your tax dollars, bar none.

Also, I plainly stated, “If you shifted the school aid to AIM, the school would be forced to raise taxes.” Nowhere did I say the funds were used to reduce taxes, and I think it is safe to say if the Village were to receive an increase in AIM funds, they would be forced to spend it anyway because the main reason taxes are high in the Village is pretty simple: low property values.

Speaking from personal experience, in just over two years, our home in Oakfield has more equity than our house in Albion did after 27 years, both in percentage and real dollars.

Nevertheless, after living in Albion and working in Medina, I still have an emotional investment in the area, so it is frustrating to see the same old excuses rolled out year after year. Until people in Orleans County hold their own locally elected officials accountable, the region will continue to decline, taxes will continue to be some of the highest in the nation, and your locally elected officials will continue to remain silent.

Thom Jennings

Oakfield