Should Peter Hornbeck serve on the Adirondack Park Agency board?

This morning, we’re airing a conversation with Peter Hornbeck, the boat builder and environmental activist who want to serve on the Adirondack Park Agency board.

His supporters, including Minerva town supervisor Sue Montgomery-Corey, say he would be a great addition to the APA.

“We believe that he will represent the needs of Adirondack communities and businesses well,” Corey wrote last week.

Critics of the nomination point out that Hornbeck is a member of the board of Protect the Adirondacks, a group that is suing the APA.

Is it an ethical conflict for him to join an Agency that he voted to sue?

Maybe so. But his supporters point out that local government groups are also currently suing the APA.

Should we prevent local government leaders from serving on the APA board (or other state agencies) if they’ve been involved in legal clashes with the state?

Hornbeck’s nomination is complicated by other factors, most beyond his control.

First is the fact that there are already three former green-group leaders on the APA board.

If Hornbeck is confirmed, half of the appointed members on the APA board would be former environmentalists. Is that too many? It’s a fair debate to have.

Second is the reality that Hornbeck was nominated by Governor David Paterson at a time when Paterson’s own political future was imploding.

Hornbeck finds himself lost in the swamp that is Albany politics.

Finally, the APA itself is in the midst of political tumult, facing renewed hostility and litigation from property rights activists and other critics.

In a way, Hornbeck’s nomination has become part of a larger debate over the APA’s identity and future.

In an editorial last week, the Plattsburgh Press-Republican argued that this was the wrong time for Hornbeck to join the Agency:

Hornbeck might be the fairest-minded individual to ever breathe Adirondack air, but his background certainly invites disdain from those at the other end of the ideological spectrum.

Sen. Betty Little, who opposes the nomination (and has squared off with the APA on many issues), points out that Protect Adirondacks has been vocal against the Adirondack Club and Resort proposal in Tupper Lake, one of the important decisions the APA will have to rule on in the next few years. How objective can Hornbeck be on that?

Even if he can be, asking anyone to believe it stretches credulity.

Hornbeck’s appointment is not only an affront to the pro-development Adirondackers, it is a disservice to an agency trying hard to earn the public’s confidence.

For the first time, you can hear what Hornbeck himself has to say about these issues and the controversies swirling around his appointment.

Before commenting here, please go listen to our conversation, hear Hornbeck’s views. Then chime in below.