He needs to spend a day in chester,

August 27, 2005

Details of La Guardia meeting kept secret

By Kristina Wells
Times Herald-Record
kwells@th-record.com

It's anybody's guess what happened yesterday when County Executive Edward Diana met with officials in New York City about Camp La Guardia.
Diana's office isn't saying much, except that issues were discussed and all agreed to "continue the discussions."
But Blooming Grove Supervisor Charles Bohan is pretty sure what happened.
Nothing.
"This was no big deal what took place. I bet (Diana) didn't come away with anything we want," Bohan said. "It's a $13 million-a-year contract ... to hide New York City's most unwanted and we have nothing to say about it."
Diana met with New York City's commissioner of homeless services, Mayor Michael Bloomberg's chief of staff and a city attorney to talk about concerns from residents who live in Chester and Blooming Grove near the 1,000-bed men's homeless shelter.
Diana emerged from the meeting offering no details. It's unknown if one of the issues discussed was about local demands for an independent monitor to verify that the camp is meeting the terms of a 1999 legal settlement with the county.
"We had a productive meeting this morning with key officials," Diana said in a statement. "I am optimistic this meeting will result in a positive outcome for the communities located near Camp La Guardia. This is the beginning of a meaningful and open dialogue between Orange County and New York City."
The meeting came on the heels of two county lawmakers suggesting policy changes that would ease community concerns about the camp.
"It's window dressing for an election year," Bohan said. "It's garbage, that's all."
Bohan and his counterparts in the neighboring village and town of Chester – Mayor Susan Bahren and Supervisor William Tully – were not invited to yesterday's meeting. The trio sent Diana a letter expressing their "displeasure" at being excluded and reiterated the communities' demands for a monitor.
"We have been directly involved in the formulation of this agreement from the very beginning and can bring a great deal of firsthand knowledge to the discussion," they wrote. "It makes no sense to deny representation to the communities that are most affected."
Bohan laughed when he learned of Diana's statement.
"That's it? You got to be kidding. We've had an open dialogue between ourselves and New York City since I've been in this office. And (Diana)'s opening a dialogue?" Bohan said. "What have we been doing for the last four years?"