Scozzafava to depart after 34 years as supervisor

Feb. 23—MORIAH — Thomas Scozzafava is Essex County's longest serving town supervisor and his office is filled with mementoes of his more than three decades at the helm.

There are numerous newspaper clippings, letters from colleagues and constituents, photos of important events, even a baseball signed by Johnny Podres, the Moriah native whose pitching for the Brooklyn Dodgers won the 1955 World Series.

SINCE 28 YEARS OLD

But it is with mixed feelings that Scozzafava, 66, plans to retire and says he will not be a candidate for re-election as Moriah town supervisor when his term expires on Dec. 31.

"Party petitions start Feb. 28 and I will not be circulating a petition," he told the Press-Republican.

"I was elected supervisor in 1985 when I was 28 years old. I left in April 1998 to work at Moriah Shock (State Correctional Facility) and came back in 2004. I have 34 years as supervisor and 44 years with the town."

'I'VE DONE THIS HALF MY LIFE'

He was Moriah buildings and ground superintendent before he ran for supervisor, and including the time he worked for the state, has 49 years in government service.

"I lost count of how many town board members and town supervisors on the County Board of Supervisors I served with," he said.

"I've done this half my life."

A Republican, he said he always tried to work across the aisle with his colleagues.

Scozzafava had originally planned to step down near the end of 2022, but said he decided to stay on and finish out his term.

"I leave with mixed emotions. The job is what you make of it. My door is open if people are interested and want to talk about running."

POSSIBLE SUCCESSOR

He said veteran Moriah Councilman Matthew Brassard has shown interest in the job.

"He's (Brassard) more than capable," Scozzafava said. "Many people may be interested. It's an open field."

Brassard said he'll be circulating petitions on the Republican line.

"My plan is to run, as of now," the councilman said.

"To anyone who's thinking of running, if you think this is an easy job, don't bother," Scozzafava said. "It's one of the hardest jobs you'll ever have."

UPS AND DOWNS

He said as the town's top elected official, he's been blamed for everything bad that happened in the community, has picked up midnight phone calls reporting that water is off due to broken lines or snowy roads not plowed, and been blasted on social media.

There have been numerous accomplishments during his time in office, Scozzafava said.

"It's primarily infrastructure, water and sewer, which needed replacement. We built two wastewater treatment plants."

The town also created an industrial park, in cooperation with the Essex County Industrial Development Agency.

"The industrial park has been a huge success," Scozzafava said.

"It's full. Pre-Tech Plastics (a tenant) is doing an expansion; Whistle Pig (Whiskey) already expanded."

One major venture that still hasn't happened is the Moriah mines hydropower project that would use the town's abandoned iron mines to generate electricity. That privately-funded undertaking has been in the works for more than 20 years but is still seeking needed permits.

"I believe the hydropower project will happen," Scozzafava said.

"I think the process of the tailings pile removal will also happen for extraction of rare earths."

The enormous iron ore tailings pile in Mineville, left behind when the mines closed in 1971, has been proposed for removal by its current owner, the Solvay Group.

'YOU KEEP TRYING'

Scozzafava said reuse of the former Moriah Shock facility is also high on his to-do list. The abandoned prison in Mineville has been proposed for workforce housing, but nothing has happened so far. It closed two years ago.

"Moriah Shock is one of the reasons I'm still here," Scozzafava said of his efforts to utilize the site.

"You don't stop; you keep trying. Every accomplishment took a team. You need the support of your board and colleagues."

He said one major accomplishment was keeping Essex County out of the regional solid-waste burn plant consortium.

Scozzafava cast the deciding vote at the Essex County Board of Supervisors in 1988 against joining the consortium, which cost Warren and Washington counties millions of dollars when they learned the contracts called for the members to cover any losses at the Hudson Falls plant.

He said he isn't sure exactly what he'll do with his time after retirement, although he was always an electrician by trade.

"I probably will continue with my electrical business. My health is still good and I'll stay busy," he said. "My hobby used to be model trains and I may start that again.

"I'm happy to help my successor, if anybody needs anything," he concluded. "This job is a lot different than when I got elected. It's a whole different world today."

Email: lmckinstry@pressrepublican.com

Twitter: @LohrMcKinstry