Saranac Lake needs better representation in Essex County

I’ve written before about Saranac Lake’s woefully undemocratic situation.  The village of roughly 5,000 people is divided between three towns, two counties and a couple of congressional districts.

It’s very difficult for citizens to know where to turn for leadership or representation.  Where does the buck stop?  Depends on who you’re asking.

Despite the fact that the community is by far the largest in the Adirondack Park, its political voice is often fragmented and diluted.

This fact was on display once again this week when town supervisors in Essex County rejected new funding for the Saranac Lake campus of North Country Community College.

The portion of Saranac Lakers who reside in Essex County would comprise one of the largest single communities in the county — far larger than Newcomb, say, or Crown Point.

But the village has no representation in Elizabethtown.

Roby Politi, who theoretically represents the “North Elba” side of Saranac Lake, lives in Lake Placid.

He’s a smart, ethical leader and has done a marvelous job of representing his home community.  But he’s not a Saranac Laker and doesn’t pretend to be.

It may be that on the merits he was right to vote against additional funding for upgrading and renovating the school.

But the village of Saranac Lake still needs — and deserves — an unambiguously local voice looking out for its interests.

The uncomfortable fact is that Monday’s weighted vote in Essex County was very close.

It appears very likely that if the Saranac Lakers who live in North Elba had been allowed to cast their own weighted vote on this matter, funding for the college would have been approved.

The situation in Franklin County — where the other half of Saranac Lake lives — is better. 

Legislator Tim Burpoe, who represents District 7 (which includes the towns of Franklin and Harrietstown) actually lives in Saranac Lake.

Burpoe supports funding the college and told the Adirondack Daily Enterprise that “the community college is dissolving right before our eyes.”

The truth is that allowing the NCCC campus to deteriorate would be a devastating blow to the economy and infrastructure of Saranac Lake.

Between NCCC and Paul Smiths, this village relies on higher education for its vibrancy in much the way that Lake Placid relies on winter sport and tourism.

Obviously, a lot of North Country communities will be forced to make sacrifices this year, putting off even good projects that would be smart investments.

But most will at least be comforted knowing that they had someone at the table who is listening to local concerns, going to bat for them, and knowing where to draw the line.

Tags: adirondacks, politics