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Jim Conroy, Candidate for Mayor of Troy (Democrat)

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Q1. With what political parties are you associated? What does that party affiliation mean to you and how it affects how you would handle your job as Mayor of Troy? "I am a Democrat and believe deeply in the principles of the Democratic Party. I believe that government should act to protect and care for all people. I believe that government must provide for the low and middle class of society in particular. I believe in the nobility of work and the value of the employee to our economic success. I believe we are better served by protecting the lives of working families than by catering to the needs of big business. With that said, I have spent much of my professional life as an economic developer and truly believe that all of these goals can be accomplished while promoting business and economic growth."

Jim Conroy (Democrat)

Q2. How would the proposed deal with Judge Development Corporation to relocate Troy City Hall away from the waterfront to the Verizon building on 6th avenue help or hurt Troy residents in both the short and long term?

"The proposed sale or “swap” of City Hall is a flawed process from the beginning. The City failed to perform the basic due diligence actions necessary for the sale of City Hall. They did not get an appraisal before the sale was announced so as to determine the true market value of the building and the site. They did not go through the bidding process to open the sale of the site. They did not fully evaluate the cost of repairs to stay in City Hall. They did not get State Legislative approval to sell parkland associated with the site and the waterfront. Finally, you can’t let the Mayor sell a public asset in a private manner. This process must be restarted and open to any and all interested parties. Any proposals should be evaluated in terms of the best long-range return to the City of Troy.

Now for the specifics of this deal:

• Troy leases City Hall for $1 per year for up to 5 years.
• Troy relocates to the Verizon Building and pays $500,000 on a building we don’t own.
• Troy pays rent of $16,000 per month, $192,000 per yr. And up to $960,000 for the 5 yr. period.
• Troy gets State grant funds to demolish City Hall ($1.2 million).
• Troy gets an older building, which sold for $1million 6 months ago for a value of $2.25 million sometime in the future (3-5 years from now).
• Troy gets a promise of a development, without a feasibility study, cost benefit analysis or design sometime in the future (3-5 years from now).
• Troy loses its site on the waterfront.

I don’t think this is a good deal and I believe if we choose to sell City Hall in the correct manner we would be successful in getting a much better offer. I prefer that the $500,000 planned for the Verizon Building be used in saving City Hall and making it a “green building” and one more accommodating to the employees and people of Troy."

Q3. If you were elected Mayor, what would be your vision for Troy over the next few years?

"My vision of Troy is to have a safe, financially stable community, which is recognized as an excellent, professionally run government. I want Troy to be an arts, education and commerce center and a “City of choice” for many of the new people arriving in Tech Valley. I want to strengthen our residential neighborhoods by providing the best public services and facilities possible. I want people to be proud of Troy for all of its assets, its physical beauty and it’s forward looking “can do” attitude."

Q4. What is the biggest challenge currently facing Troy, and how would you handle it differently from your opponents?

"The biggest challenge to the City of Troy is our cost of government. Taxes are just too high. We need to find new ways to reduce costs, consolidate services, build our tax base and generate new revenue.

Troy must also be recognized as a safe city. We must anticipate and prevent criminal activity as well as arrest criminals. I have presented a “Safe Streets Program” for this purpose. We need to build relationships between our City government, the safety professionals at the police department and our neighborhoods. The police do not need to be micro managed by City Hall until they become ineffective.

Finally, Troy must make the necessary improvements to our infrastructure and facilities to avoid catastrophic cost to our children. We need continuous improvement to our water, sewer, parks and transportation systems for today’s needs and the needs of the future."

Q5. Why should the people of the Troy choose you as their Mayor over all others?

"I have worked in local government for the better part of my adult life. I have the experience, education and know how to guide Troy through what is sure to be an exciting time in its history. I am proud of my work as Deputy Mayor of Troy and I want to complete some of the important projects, which have gone unattended for the past four years. I was born and raised in Troy and I know I can lead Troy to a better tomorrow."

For further information contact: www.jimconroyformayor.com

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