Miller Challenges Scirocco for DPW

One particular candidate from the party who has announced his intentions to run for the Commissioner of Public Works is Eddy Miller, a man best known in the city for his involvement in the equine industry and for selling hot dogs in downtown's Congress Park.

"Everything's becoming more stratified," Frank Cipriano, a horse owner at Miller's stables behind the Oklahoma Training Track said. "There're radicals on the left and there're radicals on the right, and the people in the center...aren't getting any representation. It's not just the City of Saratoga Springs or this county or New York State. It's the whole darn country that's in this same exact bind that's going on here! There's no middle ground, which is why we need to have independent people."

Cipriano certainly isn't the only one dissatisfied with the dueling left and right wing politicians as of late, as evidenced by recent town hall meetings erupting into shouting matches over health care reform across the nation. This is one of the reasons, Miller said, that he decided to throw his hat into the ring for Commissioner of Public Works in November's elections.

"I want to give people a choice," Miller said. "I want to get a chance to talk to the people, and give them the opportunity to decide who the better candidate is."

Before Miller came to Saratoga and became fondly known as "Saratoga's Hot Dog King," he owned a large, independent beer distributorship with his father and brother, covering many areas across New York State. Working as a business owner, Miller said, gave him important experience with managing people, dealing with them in a cooperative and civil manner, and taught him the importance of fiscal responsibility.

"When I was 17 years old, I was working with my brother in the summer and part time with my father," Miller said. "One day his partner had to go away on business for a week during the height of the season. He gave me a list and said, 'You've got seven tractor trailers, 15 straight trucks and 30 employees. The beer's got to go in these trucks, and it's got to go to these customers. Now you get these men to do the work, and if you can't get them to do it, then you do it. But I don't want you fighting,' he stressed. And then he says, 'Now close the door, because the air conditioning is leaving the office.'"

Miller, who is currently a member on the Independence Party state committee, hopes that if elected, he can bring the same level of cooperation and attention to fiscal management to the department of Public Works as he did then to his family business. Miller claims that currently, the Department of Public Works is inefficient, contentious, and over budget.

"I plan on bringing more productivity from a highly skilled workforce and spending less money, making cuts," Miller said. "We have some very qualified people who are on the council right now. I'm hoping that I can join them, and with the right group of people we can get a lot of stuff done instead of bickering and fighting and trying to play politics one against the other."

Miller believes there are several areas where current Commissioner of Public Works, Anthony "Skip" Scirocco, has come up short in his duties as Commissioner. One such area has to do with the oversight for a city project on a water main along South Broadway.

"For a $500,000 project, the Commissioner had a $300,000 overrun," Miller said. "His response was, 'Oh, these things happen.' What do you mean these things happen? What they did was they violated the charter. The charter says that if [a project exceeds] more than 10 percent of the initial projected costs, the job has to be temporarily stopped and brought in front of the city council, because they have to vote on it. That's what it says in our charter, that's what we have to adhere to. His response was, 'Hey, these things happen.' That's wrong."

One way Miller hopes to cut costs in the city without having to raise taxes is to physically reorganize the entire department of Public Works, perhaps even moving it to a new location completely.

"Right now National Grid is leasing a building from the city on Weibel Avenue. When the lease runs out, we should let them move. We should take our equipment from the west garage and move the equipment over there. That way we can satisfy the needs of the east side. It's less cost if the machinery's over there. Gasoline, men, the cost of going back and forth starts to add up after awhile, and it's an unnecessary cost," Miller said. "For that matter, move the Public Works Department over there. There's enough room. Free up more space in City Hall for the Public Safety Department, which is in desperate need of more space."

On August 17, Miller will be holding a fundraising event at Mare Ristorante, where he has brought together some of the biggest names in the horse racing industry to support his campaign. Those scheduled to attend include Angel Cordero, Jr., Nick Zito, Bill Mott, Leroy Jolly, Todd Pletcher, Linda Rice, John Velasquez, Stan Hough, James Bond, Rick Violette, Angel Penna, Jr., and many others from the racing world who have come out in support of Miller.

"They're the greatest people in racing, and they're coming out to support me. I would like all the people in Saratoga Springs, as many racing fans as there are, to get involved. Meet these people. Take your picture. I'm going to have a professional photographer there with an instant developer so people can have their picture taken with Angel Cordero or Bill Mott and Leroy Jolly and even get their autographs. It will be a wonderful experience," Miller said.

Miller's fundraising event will be held on Monday, August 17 from 6:30 to 10:00 p.m. In addition to the cast of racing legends in attendance, live music will be provided by the Bluz House Rockers beginning at 7 p.m.  A suggested donation is $25.

"I'm proud of my city," Miller said. "I'm an independent person, and I want to help people in Saratoga Springs enjoy the same life that I'm happy to enjoy up here as well."