Arguments for charter change make no sense

Having served as commissioner of finance from 2000 to 2002 and living in Saratoga Springs since 1970, I have had plenty of opportunities observe and participate in the commission form of government and I think it works well for us. Many of the arguments I have heard for change simply don’t make sense to me.

Here are some examples of their claims that I can’t buy:

• They argue that the workload and responsibilities of the Commissioners are so onerous that few people are willing to run for office yet they claim Commissioners’ and deputies’ positions can be abolished and their work assumed by one city manager.

• They claim the city manager form of government is the most popular in the country but that’s not true in New York State where 74% of the cities have a mayor-council form. In any case “everybody’s doing it” was never a convincing argument for my mother.

Saratoga Springs by any measure is “the place to be.” We have a high quality of life and a low tax rate. We have a Comprehensive Plan that recognizes the value of preserving open space. We are a city planning for the future with the capture of methane from the landfill and the creation of a solar array there.

There is no evidence that a city manager form will make us more successful. We have only to look at Batavia, Watertown, Ogdensburg, Auburn, Corning, Peekskill, Canandaigua, Long Beach, New Rochelle, and Sherrill, all cities in New York that have the city manager form to see the fallacy in that argument.

I prefer to live in Saratoga Springs and will be voting no on charter change. Bernard Mirling Saratoga Springs