ALBANY COUNTY — A Republican farmer and a Democratic lawyer are vying to represent the 38th District in the Albany County Legislature. Neither has held elective office.

Former GOP chairman for New Scotland, Timothy Stanton, a lifelong farmer from Feura Bush, is making his second run for the seat.

“I lost last time by less than 200 votes,” said Stanton. “All of politics needs a dose of reality,” he said of his reason for running. In 2015, Stanton lost to Michael Mackey, 981 to 782.

Victoria Plotsky is fresh off a primary victory where she ousted the incumbent, Darrell Duncan, with 70 percent of the Democratic vote.

“I had no idea it would be that much of an upset,” Plotsky said this week.

The seat had been vacated by Mackey when he became a Supreme Court justice in the state’s Third Judicial District. In January, Duncan, a former highway superintendent for New Scotland, stepped down from his five-year post as the county’s commissioner of public works and was appointed to fill the seat.

The Democrat-dominated 38th District covers most of New Scotland, minus the northeast corner with the village of Voorheesville; it also includes a piece of Bethlehem in the Feura Bush area. A combined vote of the Bethlehem and New Scotland Democratic committees had backed Duncan.

Plotsky, 50, a lawyer with the Workers’ Compensation Board, had told The Enterprise during her primary campaign that she was running “to make a difference, to care care of our rights at a local level.” She said her two major goals were reform — she’d like to see the size of the legislature reduced with redistricting done fairly — and caring for the environment.

“I’m working with my volunteers,” she said this week, “trying to reach all the voters — the Republicans and the unaffiliated voters as well as the Democrats … Mr. Stanton is a well-known name.” She added, “I’m feeling very positive.”

She also said she is good at listening to people and that her experience as an attorney, working with legislation, would serve her well.

In the primary, Plotsky had more support from voters in Bethlehem, where she had lived for years before moving to Clarksville 10 years ago, than she did in New Scotland.

Stanton said, “The legislature has a lot of lawyers and a lot of public servants.” He said more business people, like himself, are needed. “There are no farmers in the legislature … Sandy Gordon was the last one,” he said referring to a Hilltown representative who was beaten after the last redistricting.

“I’m an 11th-generation farmer,” said Stanton, who is 55. “We’ve evolved with the times,” he said of his farm, which used to be a dairy farm but now produces vegetables and other crops. The Stantons also run a pick-your-own operation and have a farmstand in Greenville and Family Harvest in New Scotland.

“You need the voice of a farmer in the legislature,” Stanton said. “They forget a lot of the county is still rural. A lot of decisions are made on what the city of Albany wants.”

He also said, “The county is always talking about preserving land. But nobody in the legislature is preserving land themselves. It would be good to have a large landowner in the legislature.”

Stanton concluded, “I’m in favor of preserving land but not infringing on property owners’ rights.”

The Enterprise asked for Stanton’s and Plotsky’s views on five issues.

Nepotism

Earlier this year, the county  legislature voted down a bill that would have restricted county office-holders from appointing their relatives to non-Civil Service county jobs. Republican legislators have since proposed amending the Albany County charter to implement an anti-nepotism policy.

Plotsky said she would favor “anything that reduces nepotism.” She said she would have to look into whether that would be better accomplished through charter revision or through statute.

“We need to do whatever will prevent people from being appointed on the basis of their relationships instead of their skills and talents,” she said.

“Too much of it goes on,” said Stanton of nepotism, adding, “It’s a hard thing.”

He went on, “There are times a family member would be the best qualified for a job. But you need some restrictions to prevent blatant nepotism.” He concluded that he is not for “total restriction.”

Garbage

As the Rapp Road landfill reaches capacity in a few years, the candidates were asked if the county should impose recycling requirements to, for instance, have organic waste or yard waste go to composting operations. They were also asked if the county should be involved in finding a new site for refuse.

“It all comes down to the county needing to develop a solid-waste plan,” said Stanton … You need a vision. The county doesn’t have one. That is the route we need to go. Then you can implement the recycling.”

He added, “It’s a tough situation because the current landfill is owned by the city.”

Plotsky said, “It would be great to expand recycling.” She noted that other communities have recycling for organic waste. “Bethlehem has had curbside pickup for making mulch and compost,” she said, adding, “I’m a recycling fan.”

She went on, “Initially, I’d say, yes — take a leadership role, speaking for all of our communities … We have to reduce waste as the population grows.”

Environment

The candidates were asked about two environmental issues. In March, the county legislature voted down a proposed expansion of it polystyrene ban. The 2013 law applies only to chain restaurants that have more than 15 locations. Advocates say biodegradable alternatives can be used.

Secondly, after the state legislature passed a law to block New York City’s law to charge fees for one-time-use thin plastic bags, the governor created a task force to look at the best way to manage the bags. Currently, the New York State Association of Counties is gathering feedback from counties across the state on the issue.

Potsky said, “The polystyrene has to go.” She noted the health concerns and said it should be phased out, remove from circulation.”

Plotsky said that, when the county was discussing the polystyrene ban, “No restaurateurs were speaking against it …. It might be a little more overhead,” she said for restaurant owners but, ultimately, the patrons pay for it. “We pay for increased minimum wage and for safety regulations This is just one more thing.”

On plastic bags, Plotsky said, “Long-term, they should go, too.” Plotsky recycles her plastic bags at the grocery store, she said.

“Even if we charged a penny,” she said for the bags, “people would cut back.”

Stanton said, “I think that, oftentimes, these bans are done just for political propaganda. It doesn’t really solve the problem.”

Rather than banning polystyrene, Stand said, he’d like to set up a program to recycle it.

A ban, he said, “would hurt charities like Meals on Wheels or the City Mission — an all-out ban would affect them.”

On the one-time-use plastic bags, Stanton said, “It should be looked at as part of the solid-waste plan.”

He concluded, “I’m against all-out banning. You get unintended  consequences.”

Suburban poverty

While urban and rural poverty are often well known, suburban poverty can be hidden. In the Guilderland public schools, for example, 15 percent of students come from poverty, up from 5 percent a decade ago. The Northeast Regional Food Bank supplies weekend meals to children in both Guilderland and Voorheesville schools who otherwise may not have enough to eat without their free school lunches.

Because of the spread-out nature of suburbia, often without public transportation, it is difficult for poor suburbanites to access city-centered services. The candidates were asked what, if anything, more the county should be doing to help the suburban poor.

“Wow. That’s a tough question,” said Stanton. “If anyone knew the answer, there wouldn’t be any, would there?” he said of suburban poverty.

He noted that his farm donates surplus food to the City Mission and the Regional Food Bank.

“The big problem with excess food from farms and restaurants,” he said, “is the logistics of getting it from the farm or restaurant to the people who need it. The county might work on something to bridge that gap.”

He went on, explaining how his farm helps: “Church groups glean stuff for us, but it’s hard to coordinate” Once the gleaned food is harvested, the Regional Food Bank distribute its to food pantries and other venues, he said.

Plotsky said of finding people in need, “Once they don’t have kids in the school system, it’s hard to even know who’s at risk. Teachers and social workers can pick up on it. Once you don’t have that link, it’s harder to identify people.”

She said of a solution, “It’s got to be increased outreach from the county … People have to be on the radar by looking at the data so we can let them know what’s available at the local level.”

She concluded, “Staffing is always an issue. “

Heroin

The opioid epidemic continues to take lives and increase crime. Candidates were asked what the county is doing well and what more the county should do to stem the epidemic and to prevent addicts’ recidivism.

Plotsky said the key is “reaching folks as early as possible.”

She went on, “I was speaking with a judge over the weekend … Kids pick up from their parents, as young as 6 and 7,  how to manage stress. We need education, early and often.”

She also said compassion is needed — “trying to get the services they need.”

She also recommended “having a close mentoring system when they get out of incarceration, and a mentoring system within the prison.”

She concluded, of addiction, “It is something people can get through and overcome.”

Stanton responded, “I’m not in favor of just throwing money at things … We need to find out how we’re going to do it. We need a countywide task force to come up with a plan.”