— Nicole Fay Barr

GUILDERLAND — With town elections still more than five months away, the party in power is taking its time getting to the starting line, as the challengers — without a full team — seem eager to begin the race.

While Guilderland’s Democratic committee doesn’t plan to announce its candidates until June, most of the incumbents say they plan to run.

The Republican committee announced its candidates this week, but is still far short of a full slate. The GOP has two candidates for the town board and a long-time judge seeking re-election, but no candidates lined up yet for supervisor, town clerk, or receiver of taxes.

The incumbent Democratic supervisor, Kenneth Runion, says he plans on running for a fourth two-year term. Party chair David Bosworth says he’s confident Runion will be endorsed.

Town supervisor
Runion’s goals for the future include getting the town’s comprehensive plan implemented. Four years ago, the town board adopted a master land-use plan. The plan examines a handful of areas.

The town is currently holding public hearings to discuss adopting laws related to Behan Planning Associates’ guidelines for farmland and open-space conservation. The rural Guilderland plan has been criticized by some.

Runion, 51, grew up in Rochester and moved to Guilderland in 1974.

He has a degree in political science from the State University of New York College at Potsdam and a degree from Albany Law School.

Runion had a private law practice in Delmar for years and has had several elected and appointed positions. He served as Guilderland’s town attorney from 1984 to 1992 and as zoning board attorney from 1993 to ’97. He also served as mayor of Altamont from 1993 until becoming town supervisor in 2000.

Runion and his wife, Helene, have two sons, Kevin and David.

The Republicans still do not have a candidate for town supervisor, said committee chairman Tony Cortes. The nominee they had, who Cortes declined to name, withdrew, he said.
"We have until June 7 to get a full slate," Cortes said. The Republican committee will have another meeting before then, as soon as it finds someone who’s interested in running for supervisor, he said.
Asked if he was nervous not having a supervisor candidate now, Cortes said, "I’d like to have a reliable candidate, but I think, down the road before June 7, we will have a name...It will not be vacant. I can guarantee that."

The Republican town board candidates aren’t worried about not having a supervisor candidate now, either.
"It doesn’t make me nervous," said Ed Glenning. "I’ve got good relationship skills....Looking at it from a career perspective, it’s tough to find qualified candidates."
"At this point, they’re still considering some names," said Michael Donegan. "There are people under consideration and I’m not overly concerned. We’re going to put up a good slate."

Town board Democrats
Democratic incumbent Patricia Slavick is likely to get her party’s nomination.
"For me, being on the board has been a great learning experience," Slavick told The Enterprise. "I want to continue that."

Like Runion, Slavick’s main goal for the future is to implement the town’s comprehensive plan, she said.

In 1999, before Slavick was on the board, she worked in groups that were drafting the plan. She joined the board in 2000 and, not long after, the plan was adopted.

She also wants to continue to make improvements to the Watervliet Reservoir, the town’s main source of drinking water.

Slavick said she’s proud of helping a range of people in town, from getting soccer fields in DiCaprio Park for Guilderland children to getting senior housing on Carman Road for older residents.

Slavick, 53, works for the state’s Office of Mental Health. She is an accountant there who does information technology work. For most of her career, she worked at General Electric’s corporate tax and global research center.

Slavick has a degree in business administration from The College of Saint Rose and a degree in accounting from the University at Albany’s school of business.

She grew up in Schenectady and moved to Guilderland 20 years ago. Slavick and her husband, Stephen, have two children, Kristen, 23, and Stephen Jr., 19.

Bosworth told The Enterprise that incumbent councilman Bruce Sherwin is not likely to be re-nominated by the town’s Democratic committee. (See related story.)

Democrat Paul Pastore may run with Slavick for the other town board seat, Bosworth said. Pastore could not be reached this week for comment.

Pastore is an attorney with the firm of McNamee, Lochner, Titus, & Williams. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame, with a degree in government and international relations, and from Albany Law School.

Pastore has been the town’s planning board attorney for several years.
"He’s been active in town affairs," Bosworth said. "He’s a voice in the planning movement."

Pastore ran for town justice in 1993 and lost to long-time Judge Steven J. Simon. Bosworth said Pastore’s experience in running for an elected position is an advantage.

Town board Republicans
Last Wednesday, the town’s Republican committee chose Donegan and Glenning to run for town board.

That evening, Donegan and Glenning, along with two others, told the committee why they want to run for town board.
"After that, the committee asked questions on issues such as economic growth, development, crime, and stuff like that," said Cortes. "Mike Donegan and Ed Glenning did a great presentation."

Of 40 committee members, 19 attended the meeting and voted, Cortes said.
"I had people say that, for the first time, they went to a meeting like this and nothing was pre-fixed," Cortes said. "It’s not like the committee knew what it wanted to do. Every candidate that went was expecting to win."

Norman Mullen, a small-business owner in Guilderland, lost the nomination by one vote, Cortes said. Wesley Staroba was close behind; news stories about Staroba appeared in The Enterprise last year when he vocally opposed a zoning law that said his pickup truck is large enough to be considered a commercial vehicle and cannot be parked in his driveway at night.

Cortes praised all four who interviewed for the nomination and said he’s looking forward to the campaign.

Glenning said he decided to run for town board after seeing the committee’s ad in The Enterprise.

Glenning, 41, works as the senior vice president for a technological area in the Bank of America.
"There’s not an appetite in town for any real significant commercial growth," Glenning said. "There’s not a balance between residential growth and commercial."

The town is at a period where there is little growth, he said, but growth is needed to generate revenue to maintain open space.

The town’s proposed rural Guilderland plan needs more work, Glenning said.
He went on to say that Guilderland is a good place to live. "It has an excellent police force and a justice system," he said. "But, with the increase in the seriousness of crimes committed within the town’s borders, we should show leadership from a town perspective."

Glenning and his wife have lived in Guilderland for 10 years. They have a seven-year-old daughter. The couple came to Guilderland because of its good school system.
Asked why he decided to run, Donegan, an attorney, said, "I think the town is coming to a crossroads period. We’ve got to get a lot of issues in the forefront. Myself and Ed Glenning can provide that leadership."
He went on of the proposed rural Guilderland plan. "We need to look at being smart about the way we control the town. We need to be even-handed and fair," Donegan said.
Donegan criticized the current plan as being vague. "It’s hard in some aspects to figure out exactly how to permit open space, but there needs to be some more room for business to be included in a growth plan. That’ll spread the tax base."

Donegan and his wife, Rita, have lived in Altamont for eight years.

He grew up on Long Island and earned a degree in American history at the University at Albany. He went to law school on Long Island, but found he liked this area so much that he was drawn back.

Donegan, 45, has also been involved in several community organizations, such as the Altamont Community Tradition, the Community Caregivers, St. Lucy’s Church, and he served on the village’s police review committee.

Town justice
Republican Steven J. Simon has decided to run again for town judge, a post he’s held for a quarter of a century, and he has received his party’s support. Although the Democrats have not yet named a candidate, Bosworth told The Enterprise that he is sure assistant town attorney Denise Randall will be nominated to challenge Simon.

Guilderland has two town justices who each serve four-year terms. Democrat John Bailey was elected two years ago to replace Judge Kenneth Riddett, who retired after two decades. Bailey is the first Democrat in the town’s 200-year history to serve as judge.

Simon is running for another four-year term and says its his experience that qualifies him.
"I enjoy the job and I feel I have something to offer since I’ve been here for 25 years," he said. "My experience helps in making my decisions."

Guilderland has changed since Simon was first elected, he said. The growing population and construction of Crossgates Mall has caused the court to have many more cases.

Also, he said, more serious crimes are committed in Guilderland.
"I want to continue what I think can be an open court, that’s accessible to the people," Simon said. "I want it to be more efficient."

Simon, 63, has had a private law practice in Albany for 33 years. He graduated from Union College and Albany Law School. He also served as an officer in the United States Navy for three-and-a-half years.

He and his wife, Judy, a fifth-grade teacher at Westmere Elementary School, have lived in Guilderland since 1967.
Simon concluded, "I enjoy the job and I look forward to being in the court and continuing with enthusiasm to running a court that’s open and accessible."

Simon’s opponent, Randall, spoke about making the court more open and flexible.
"I want to be more of a presence in the court," she said. "A justice should be accessible. I live and work on Western Avenue. My office is six minutes from the court and my house is five minutes away. I can be there quickly for arraignments, morning, noon, and night."

For almost six years, Randall has been the prosecutor in Guilderland Town Court.
"I’ve watched the courts and how they work," she said. "I have ideas on how it could be more efficient and flexible in scheduling."

Randall also has strong feelings on treating non-violent offenders and sentencing them with restitution, rather than fines.
"It’s important for young people to not just pay a fine and feel they’ve purchased their way out of difficulty," she said. "Basically, they’re good people but they don’t understand the impact of things."

Randall has been practicing law for 28 years. She graduated from Mount Holyoke College and Albany Law School. She has worked for the city of Albany and for state’s attorney general’s office.

She currently has a private practice on Western Avenue with her husband, Robert, and is an adjunct professor of business law at The College of Saint Rose.

Randall and her husband have a daughter, Griffan, 19, and a son, Jordan, 15.

Town clerk
Town Clerk Rosemary Centi, a Democrat, hopes to get her party’s nomination on June 6. She ran unopposed for the two-year post in 2003 and, this year, no Republican has yet stepped forward to challenge her.

Centi has more she’d like to accomplish for the town, she told The Enterprise.
"I want to get more of our minutes on disc form so they’re more accessible for me to retrieve," she said.

Centi is also closely following the Help American Vote Act, which requires municipalities to use new voting machines.
"I’m pulling every article on that," she said.

Centi was appointed as town clerk in August of 2000 and was then elected in 2001.
"I want to continue providing an open, accessible, and responsible office," Centi said. "I feel I’ve done a good job. I feel I’ve been pretty open with everybody who has had requests."

Centi grew up in Schenectady. She earned a bachelor’s degree in secondary education from Siena College. Centi was a Spanish teacher who later worked as a substitute teacher for several schools.

Centi has lived in Guilderland with her husband, Daniel, for almost 20 years. They have three children: Daniel Jr., 25; Justin, 22; and Jacqueline, 19.

Receiver of Taxes
Democrat Jean Cataldo, the town’s receiver of taxes, is also hoping to secure her party’s nomination. She, too, is so far unopposed.
"The job has been a challenge and I love a challenge," Cataldo told The Enterprise. "I also enjoy dealing with the residents in the town of Guilderland."

Her job is sometimes difficult, Cataldo said, because she has to follow state laws, some that she doesn’t agree with. Residents often assume she can make decisions, but, she said, she can only follow the law.
"I try my best to give 200 percent in customer service," Cataldo said. "That’s what I really want to provide....My goal is to educate people more about the taxpaying process."

She also tries to make tax collection easier for the residents, she said. The town recently opened a new branch at First Niagara Bank on Western Avenue, so Westmere residents in the eastern end of town wouldn’t have to travel far to pay their taxes. There is also a secure box at Town Hall where residents can leave their payments after hours and still make the deadline, she said.

Cataldo has been the town’s receiver of taxes since 2000. Before that, she worked as an administrative assistant for Marriot and as a customer-service representative for Crossgates Mall.

Cataldo, 49, grew up in Albany and attended business school. She has two sons, Michael, 22, and Stephen, 20.