North Country This Week

MADRID -- St. Lawrence County Chairman Kevin Acres, R-Madrid, who is seeking re-election, says his experience is his strength and the record on the board speaks for itself.

“I am running to continue the great financial progress that we have made since taking the leadership role in 2015.  We had a negative three million Fund Balance in 2015.  We are now, in 2018, at a plus $18.3 million.  My strengths and qualifications are my business and municipal expertise.  I am very frugal and approach county spending as if it is my own money,” Acres said in an emailed response to questions.

“I have been a Legislator for eight years.  I have been Chairman the last two years and Vice Chairman for one year, all since 2015.  I served on the Madrid Waddington School Board for 22 years, starting at the age of 27 and also served on the BOCES board concurrently for 6 years.  During this time, I was involved in many contract negotiations, arbitrations, legal undertakings, litigation, budgets and participated in employee interviews at all three levels.”

Acres said a major obstacle for the county in coming years will be maintaining its massive road system.

“The biggest issue facing the county is our infrastructure.  We have about 200 bridges and 600 miles of roads.  Right now, they are measured by the state as being 40% deficient.  It would take $10 million a year to maintain this level.  We need to find a way to leverage our local, state and federal dollars to make this critical investment,” he said.

Another major concern, according to Acres, is the county’s high rates of poor health and poverty.

“ A second concern, equal to our infrastructure, is our state of public health.  We have higher rates of lung cancer and heart disease.  These are largely associated with higher rates of poverty, and St. Lawrence County is one of the very poorest counties in New York State.  We also have significant drug, alcohol and mental health challenges to address.  We are constantly assessing our quality and measuring outcomes from Public Health and Community Services to see how we are performing,” he said.

Acres, a self-branded fiscal conservative, says the county must continue to provide adequate services by working within its means.

“We continue to look for inefficiencies and also for opportunities to enhance what we do at the county.  Our objective is to provide services that are needed by the public and to do them at a high quality level.  We have tasked our department heads with mindset that they are here to serve the public and that public funds used in their department are limited.  The high taxes of New York State are forcing people to lose their homes and property.  We must do with what we have without additional financial stress on our citizens,” he said.

Acres says he has a lengthy history of public service that separates him from his opponent.

“What separates me from my opponent is experience and demonstrated results.  I have been involved in public service for 33 years and have been exposed to a multitude of situations where critical decision making is required.  I have been self employed all my life.  I started out with a $10,000 loan in 1983 and built a business that has grown exponentially from our hard work, raised a family, and put three sons through college.  As a dairy farmer, we know first hand the burdens of New York State's heavy property taxes,” he said.

Acres said while he represents District 8, he sees the role of all legislators, especially the chairman, as countywide obligation.

“Actions on the Legislative Board rarely benefit any one district specifically.  As Chairman, I get calls from individuals from all over the county and I try to get them answers.  We all can benefit from better roads and certainly, we try our best to keep bridges open whenever possible.  We repair or replace as much as our finances allow,” he said. “Everyday is a challenge in a county as geographically big as St. Lawrence County, but it's a beautiful place with nice people.  A great place to raise a family.”