Three members of Rockland’s state legislative delegation have urged Gov. David Paterson reconsider his decision to close the state police laboratory in Newburgh.

Law enforcement in Rockland, Westchester, Putnam, Orange, Dutchess and Sullivan counties depend on the laboratory for analysis on evidence for criminal cases and prosecutions. The lab has serviced the lower Hudson Valley for 31 years. Nearly 15 tro 20 years ago efforts by some to build a Rockland County forensic lab never got off the ground.

The Newburgh-based lab’s closure puts more work on the state police lab in Albany and would add another 90 minutes of travel if officers have to drive to the Albany to pick up or deliver evidence, instead of Newburgh, contend the trio of legislators – Sen. Thomas Morahan, R-New City, and Assembly members Ellen Jaffee, D-Suffern, and Kenneth P. Zebrowski, D-New City.

They also emphasize how much work the crime lab does for the region and Rockland law enforcement. In 2008, the laboratory handled analysis for 2,414 drug cases and 765 toxicology cases.

…Thomas Morahan          Ellen Jaffee             Ken Zebrowski

Below is a copy of the letter from the three lawmakers to Paterson, released to the public this week:

August 25, 2009
Governor David A. Paterson
State Capitol
Albany, NY 12224

State Legislators Protest Newburgh Lab Closure

Dear Governor Paterson,
We write today to ask you to reconsider the closure of the State Police Lab located in Newburgh, New York. While we recognize the financial situation the State is facing, closing this lab will, in the long-term, adversely affect residents of Rockland County and the Hudson Valley and greatly impair our county’s law enforcement agencies’ ability to protect those who live and work in Rockland County.
A study completed in 1972 found that more than one-third of drug evidence submissions to the New York State Police Laboratory System originated from the Mid-Hudson region. In response to the this demonstrated need, the Mid-Hudson Regional Crime Laboratory opened in 1978, and has, for the last 31 years, served law enforcement agencies in Rockland, Orange, Dutchess, Westchester, Sullivan, and Putnam Counties, as well as New York State Parole and Corrections, and various federal government agencies.
The regional need for this laboratory has not diminished since its inception. In fact, we can expect the need to continue to rise due to increased arrests and prosecution for drug and alcohol related-incidents, most of which require the expertise of the Mid-Hudson Regional Crime Laboratory. In 2008, this translated to 2,414 drug cases and 765 toxicology cases.
In addition, further taxing police departments’ already stretched resources by forcing officers to travel to Albany, an additional 90 minutes each way from Rockland County, will take officers out of the communities where they do the most good and have them traveling on the New York State Thruway for nearly an entire shift. This will inevitably impact scheduling for police departments and result in additional overtime pay – a burden to the taxpayers.

The other day, The Journal News and LoHud.com ran an article on how much money various state Senators and Assembly members had gotten in what are technically called member items, but more colloquially called pork.

Our data desk has put together a searchable database that you can access here.

Rockland’s lone state senator, Thomas Morahan (R-New City), ranked in the top 10 of all state legislators in the amount of money he secured for projects and organizations in his home district.

He alone brought about $2 million to his district. For all of Rockland’s legislators combined — Morahan and Assembly members Ellen Jaffee, D-Suffern; Nancy Calhoun, R-Blooming Grove; Annie Rabbitt, R-Greenwood Lake; and Kenneth P. Zebrowski, D-New City — nearly $3 million came to their constituents, though Morahan, Rabbitt and Calhoun also serve parts of Orange County, where some of those funds went.

Representatives from the state’s Public Service Commission are coming to Rockland County to talk about a controversial tree-removal program that has upset many local homeowners. (See posts below.) The event is sponsored by State Sen. Thomas Morahan and assembly members Ellen Jaffee and Ken Zebrowski.

The community forum takes place Monday, April 28, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at Orangetown Town Hall, 26 Orangeburg Road.

Here’s who is coming from the PSC: Howard Tarler, Chief of Electric/Gas Transmission; James Austin, Chief of Environmental Certification; and David Morrell, from the Environmental Compliance unit. Officials from Orange and Rockland Utilities will also be on-hand to answer questions. The public is invited to attend.

Somehow I knew Ryan Karben knew how to throw an impressive party.

From the red and white checkered tablecloths on the outdoor dining tables to the waitresses serving multi-colored mojitos and fruit kabobs, patrons of the Karbens’ backyard barbecue all seemed to be enjoying themselves.

And that was before the caterers busted out the burgers and hot dogs on a grills just slightly smaller than the average twin-sized bed.

And those guests just kept coming. By night fall, Karben’s street and surrounding neighborhood were packed with cars. Hopefully, the neighbors were too busy enjoying the party to notice.

Though Karben has been hinting at a return to politics via a run for Ramapo Town Board, there were no announcements tonight. Instead he addressed the crowd from his back deck, thanking his former Assembly colleagues Adam Bradley and Amy Paulin for coming and paying tribute to late Assemblyman Kenneth P. Zebrowski.

As expected the party had a mix of long-time politicians and up-and-comers looking to hobnob with those long-time politicians. Though unsurprisingly Democrat heavy, there were some partygoers from the other side of the ballot, including Republican Sheriff James Kralik.

The host himself was busy entertaining his guests, casually decked out in an untucked buttoned-down shirt and man sandals (a recent purchase, he noted.)
The Ramapo Town Board seat in question has been empty since the death last month of longtime Board Member Harry Reiss.

He’s one of four Democrats that have shown interest in the seat. The Ramapo Democratic Committee is expected to hold a convention next month to choose a candidate for the November ballot.

Vince Monte, the Rockland County Democratic Committee chairman, called me this morning. I had tried, unsuccessfully, to reach him several times last week for a story I was doing on the departure of County Legislator Roman Rodriguez, D-Haverstraw, and his wife, village Trustee Evelyn Rodriguez.

In a complete change from what he had said before, Monte said the Legislature will likely fill Roman Rodriguez’s seat by appointment and the appointee pushed by the Democratic party would be Haverstraw Town Board Member Jay Hood Jr. who is already mounting a campaign for November’s elections.
He had told me a couple of months ago that he would prefer to wait to fill Roman Rodriguez’s seat by election in the fall rather than appoint someone this summer. Roman and Evelyn are expected to move from Rockland by the end of this month.

The Dems in Rockland have taken quite a bit of heat in the last year or two for a string of appointments to the Legislature. Two of the four most recent appointees, Alden Wolfe and now-Assemblyman Kenneth P. Zebrowski, were defeated in the elections following their appointments. Wolfe is running for his old seat this year.

Kenneth P. Zebrowski is Rockland County’s newest assemblyman. He easily defeated Republican opponent Matt Brennan tonight to take the 94th District seat.

With 100 percent of the districts reporting, unofficial results from the Rockland County Board of Elections show Zebrowski, a Democrat, with 3,598 votes to Brennan’s 1,181.

The 94th Assembly District seat has been empty since the March 18 death of Assemblyman Kenneth P. Zebrowski, father of tonight’s winner.

Zebrowski was all smiles at Rocco’s in New City, walking through a crowd of people who were eager to shake his hand or give him a hug.

“We did it!” he announced.

Later, after his victory speech, Zebrowski said he visited his father’s grave before coming to the celebration and said he’d have bittersweet feelings walking into the Assembly chambers for the first time.

But he wasn’t planning on celebrating for long tonight. He’s due in Albany at 9 a.m. tomorrow.

Brennan said he was shocked how few people turned out at the polls, but wished Zebrowski good luck.

“It seems like a big waste of taxpayer money,” he said of the election. “Maybe next time the governor should appoint someone.”

Cablevision will be re-airing the April 24 debate between Matt Brennan and Kenneth P. Zebrowski, both candidates for the 94th Assembly District special election.

Brennan, a Republican, said today that Cablevision told him the debate would be re-broadcast at 7 p.m. tonight, 8 p.m. tomorrow and 8:30 p.m. Monday. The debate was held by Clarkstown South High School students.

The special election will be held Tuesday to fill the seat left empty by Zebrowski’s father, the late Assemblyman Kenneth P. Zebrowski.

As usual, the Assembly Democrats got more money to spend on pet projects this year—commonly referred to as “pork,” but Republicans got more this year than last. About $2 million to be exact.

For more information on pork spending and the specifics of the statewide trends, click here for our recent Lohud.com story.

In Rockland, the late Assemblyman Kenneth P. Zebrowski, D-New City, secured the most pork funding—$153 million—to be spent on things like a new van for the Helen Hayes Hospital Foundation and new computers for Meals on Wheels.

Nancy Calhoun, R-Blooming Grove, came in second for the Rockland Assembly members, but out of $121,000, only three items totaling $17,000 were set aside for Rockland, not including money for the Ramapo-Catskills Library System which includes both Rockland and Orange counties.

Calhoun’s district includes all of Stony Point.

Annie Rabbitt, R-Greenwood Lake, set aside $18,096 and just four items of her $103,000 total for Rockland items, not including the Ramapo-Catskills Library system. Her district includes part of Ramapo.

Freshmen Assemblywoman Ellen Jaffee, D-Suffern, brought home a total of $110,000 for things like renovations at the Airmont community center after school programs at the Nyack Center and the Martin Luther King Center.

Below is a full list of the Rockland Assembly pork:

Nancy Calhoun, R-Blooming Grove

$2,500, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Orange County for youth programs.

$10,000, Town of Blooming Grove for senior center improvements and recreation equipment at Mays Field.

$10,000, Town of Chester for Sugar Loaf planning grant.

$5,000, Town of Cornwall to digitize historical archives.

$10,000, Town of Crawford for improvements to the town park.

$2,500, Town of Highlands for equipment at Fort Montgomery.

$7,500, Town of Highlands Ambulance Corps for defibrillators and pagers.

$7,500, Town of Montgomery for a video-surveillance system.

$8,500, Town of New Windsor for a backup generator.

$10,000, Town of Stony Point for programs.

$4,500, Town of Stony Point for an accident-investigation system.

$10,000, Town of Woodbury for senior center improvements.

$5,000, Village of Cornwall-on-Hudson for a commercial freezer door.

$2,500, Village of South Blooming Grove for start-up expenses.

$2,500, Village of Walden for programs.

$2,500, Village of Woodbury for start-up expenses.

$2,500, Rockland County Sheriff’s Dept. for sex offender-tracking software.

$5,000, Ramapo-Catskill Library System for a summer reading program.

$5,000, Sarah Wells Girl Scout Council for programs.

$3,000, Orange County Veterans Cemetery for equipment.

$5,000, Orange County Firefighters Museum for programs.

$121,000 total.
– – – – – – – – -

Ellen Jaffee, D-Suffern

$2,000, Suffern Farmers Market for marketing and promotion.

$7,500, Village of Spring Valley for training classes.

$2,000, Orangetown Fire Company No. 1 to remodel the interior room.

$8,000, Lower Hudson Valley Challenger Center for software and programs.

$10,000, Community Outreach Center of Monsey for a community patrol.

$7,500, Village of Spring Valley for the Jitney bus service.

$5,000, Community Action Program of Rockland for women’s programs.

$4,000, Community Action Network for a Drug-Free Life and Environment for counseling programs.

$15,000, Haitian American Cultural and Social Organization (Spring Valley) for a language-support program.

$8,000, Martin Luther King Multi-Purpose Center for software and equipment for an after-school program.

$5,000, Nyack Center for an after-school cultural program.

$7,500, Rockland County YMCA for after-school programs and field trips.

$9,500, Rockland Family Shelter for a teen workshop on abusive relationships.

$10,000, Village of Airmont to renovate a community center.

$4,000, Volunteer Counseling Service of Rockland to upgrade computer system.

$1,000, NAMI Familya of Rockland for support services for the mentally ill.

$4,000, Arts Council of Rockland for marketing.

$110,000 total.
– – – – — – – -

Annie Rabbitt, R-Greenwood Lake

$2,260, Pine Island Chamber of Commerce to plant trees.

$2,260, Campbell Hall Fire Dept. for equipment.

$4,524, Monroe Lakeside Fire Dept. for equipment.

$4,524, Town of Goshen for a fuel-dispensing system.

$4,524, Town of Hamptonburgh to construct a picnic area at a senior center.

$4,524, Town of Mount Hope for playground equipment.

$4,524, Town of Warwick to pave the area around an animal shelter.

$4,524, Village of Goshen for improvements to village hall.

$4,524, Village of Harriman for improvements to village hall.

$4,524, Village of Hillburn Dept. of Public Works for equipment.

$4,524, Village of Kiryas Joel for a radio repeater.

$4,524, Village of Monroe to plant trees in Crane Park.

$4,524, Village of Montebello for solar electric panels at town hall and for a 20th anniversary brochure.

$4,524, Village of Otisville to pave a municipal parking lot and for new curbs and trees.

$4,524, Village of Sloatsburg for software.

$4,524, Village of Suffern for Suffern Day.

$4,524, Village of Tuxedo Park to repair a dam.

$4,524, Village of Warwick for benches.

$4,524, Florida Police Dept. for security cameras at reservoirs.

$4,524, Greenwood Lake Police Dept. for computer upgrades.

$4,524, Wallkill Police Dept. for equipment.

$5,000, Ramapo-Catskill Library System for a reading program ($500 for each library in the system).

$4,524, Tuxedo Senior Center for renovations to the railroad station.

$3,000, Orange County Veteran’s Service Agency for cemetery equipment.

$103,000 total.
– – – – – – – -

Ken Zebrowski, D-New City

$10,000, Helen Hayes Hospital Foundation for a van.

$30,000, Village of Haverstraw for a new room at the Haverstraw Center.

$8,500, Village of Pomona for an emergency generator.

$50,000, Village of Spring Valley to replace the heating system at the Louis Kurtz Civic Center.

$2,900, Rockland Teachers’ Center Institute to purchase school supplies for needy children.

$5,000, Meals on Wheels of Rockland for new computers.

$5,000, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Rockland for a gang-prevention counselor.

$3,100, Child Care Resources of Rockland for new computers.

$7,000, Community Action Program of Rockland for women’s programs.

$5,000, Haverstraw Ecumenical Project and Day Care Center for services.

$7,000, Interfaith Coalition for the Homeless of Rockland County for office equipment.

$8,000, Rockland Family Shelter for furniture.

$2,500, Star Kids (Garnerville) for a sports program.

$5,000, Volunteer Counseling Service of Rockland to upgrade the computer system.

$4,000, Arts Council of Rockland for office equipment and a newsletter.

$153,000 total.

Students at Clarkstown South High School in West Nyack will host a televised debate between Democrat Kenneth P. Zebrowski Jr. and Republican Matt Brennan, the two candidates for the May 1 special election to fill the 94th Assembly District seat.

The seat has been empty since the March 18 death of Assemblyman Kenneth P. Zebrowksi. The Democratic candidate is his son.

The debate, scheduled for 7 p.m. on April 24, will be televised on Cablevision channel 77.

Rockland County Legislator Ed Day, R-New City, said today that he will not run for the 94th Assembly seat, which is now vacant following the March 18 death of Assemblyman Kenneth P. Zebrowski.

(Vincent DiSalvio/The Journal News)

Day said he received several phone calls encouraging him to run, but decided he could best serve the public on the Rockland County Legislature.

“I just felt that I wanted to finish what I was doing,” he said.

Kenneth P. Zebrowski Jr., son of the late Assemblyman Kenneth P. Zebrowski, announced today that he will seek election to the 94th Assembly District. Assemblyman Zebrowski died March 18 from complications of liver disease less than four months into his second term.

The governor’s office announced today that the special election will be held May 1.

“We care about a lot of the same things,” Zebrowski Jr. said today, noting that he’d like to continue his father’s work on HMO reform and relief for North Rockland taxpayers.
Kenneth P. Zebrowski Jr. on the campaign trail in 2005. Photo by Vincent DiSalvio/The Journal News

Zebrowski Jr. served on the County Legislature for a year in 2005 after being appointed to his father’s old seat when the elder Zebrowski was first elected to the Assembly. The younger Zebrowski then lost his seat in November 2005 to now Legislator Ed Day, R-New City.

Former Clarkstown Town Board Member Ann Marie Smith also said today that she’s interested in running for the position.

Day said he’s received phone calls encouraging him to run also, but is not ready to make a decision yet. But, “I really find all this timing very curious,” he said. “I find it remarkable that these announcements come almost within an hour of each other.”

The governor’s office is expected to announce a date for a special election within the next few days.

Everyone seems to have a Kenneth Zebrowki memory, even people who only knew him as an Assemblyman.

Zebrowski after his 2004 election to the Assembly. Photo by Vincent DiSalvio/The Journal News

One Valley Cottage resident remembered greeting Zebrowski in Polish while he was campaigning.

And his friend, confidante and chief of staff Kenneth Ingenito remembered today how he kept trying to retire but how Zebrowski pulled him—twice—back into the working world, once as his assistant when Zebrowski was chairman of the Legislature and then again as chief of staff in his Assembly district office.

Former Assemblyman Ryan Karben, also a Democrat, said one of Zebrowski’s proudest accomplishments as a politician was when he brought off-track betting, and a slice of the revenue, to Rockland County in the 1970s. Karben said Zebrowski continued to speak about that on the Legislature floor and in Albany.

“It’s not like Kenny played the horses, but he was so proud to find a revenue source and fund the government,” he said.