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People: Trustee Candidate: Rick Gioia

Rick Gioia
Rick Gioia
January 30, 2007

First of a series of profiles of the five individuals expected to be on the ballot in the village Mayor and Trustee election on March 20.

When Rick Gioia speaks of his decision to run for trustee of the village of Cornwall-on-Hudson, he mentions Tom Vezzetti, a populist mayor in Hoboken, New Jersey, where he used to live. “He walked down Main Street with a bullhorn, “ Gioia recalls, describing how the mayor stopped and spoke with everyone he met. “He had a huge heart,” Gioia says, “and always had the people’s interest in mind.”

Rick Gioia would like to see more of that openness in village government, he says, and more encouragement of people to attend public meetings for a healthy debate of the issues. He says that he is “running in support of Joe Gross (mayoral candidate) and his idea of making it a more open village.”

Gioia, 49, is a professional cameraman who has lived in the village for 14 years with his wife, Barbara Smith Gioia, and their two children. Born in New York City and raised in New Jersey, he and his wife were attracted to the “remarkable natural environment and open sight lines” of the village. They bought a 19th-century brick home and settled in.

“I am a preservationist and a naturalist,” Gioia says. “People have to realize what a gem the village is.”

Gioia says that his decision to run comes from a desire to preserve things, adding that he doesn’t “pretend to have an understanding of the nuts and bolts of the workings of the government” and that if elected he will be on a “learning curve.”

He agrees with village Mayor Ed Moulton that the tax dilemma facing residents is the burden of the school tax and hopes that Governor Spitzer or Congressman John Hall can do something about that. Until the state addresses the issues, the village can “be vigilant and thrifty,” he says, “so that retired people on fixed incomes can live here.”

Gioia admits that he has a lot to learn about how the village functions, but he sees possible spending reduction once the Black Rock water filter plant is online. He would not favor, however, selling water to other municipalities until it is proven that the current sources are sustainable for Cornwall customers.

Gioia frequently attends public meetings in the village and often expresses his thoughts in letters to the Local newspaper. Among his criticisms is that the village government should be more aggressive in enforcing local codes. “The village does get complaints and they are not acted on,” Gioia says.

Recently, he wrote that “there has been a disconcerting silence about some of the most prominent issues affecting village life,” and wrote of a “disturbing pattern” in the lack of public updates from the master plan committee, the local development corporation and, perhaps, the riverfront revitalization committee.

When asked if he was accusing the various committees of hiding their true intent from the public, Gioia says, “I am not trying to create conspiracy theories, but I am expecting accountability and transparency.”

Gioia is concerned about the waterfront development and sees the potential for it to become a “battleground” between people who want to develop it and those who want to keep it the same. “I see the gazebo as a line in the sand for possible future development,” he says, “a permanent building in an area where we haven’t seen any.” He likes the idea of a floating dock but not a commercialized permanent landing, like the Mary Powell Dock. He also agrees with installing compostable toilets,

He favors measured, controlled growth and would like to see aspects of the village’s master plan enacted after the public has had a chance to give more input on the draft plan. "The Master Plan Committee set up a schedule that they didn’t stick to,” he says, “and didn’t inform the public.”

Gioia says that the Local Development Corporation’s proposal for a new façade on the Food Bank building on Hudson Street ‘could be potentially good,” adding that something should be done with that wall. He also thinks that environmental issues raised by Joe Gross regarding the Food Bank property should also be addressed. (Read more about the Food Bank project here.)

Gioia says he has been criticized for questioning the intentions of people on those committees who are volunteering their time to the community and clarifies that “no one in their right mind would turn away people who have the means to do something good for the community.” But, Gioia warns, “their influence may be lopsided – they don’t have the keys to the candy store.”

“This is a sleepy little community, Gioia says, “and that’s something we love about the place. But it’s dangerous, too. Things just go along. No news is not necessarily good news.”



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