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Wallkill Valley Times , Wednesday , March 14 , 2018

PUBLIC AGENDA

THURSDAY , MARCH 15 Montgomery Town Board , 12:30 p . m . Town Government Center , 110 Bracken Road , Montgomery . Special meeting to appoint a new town attorney . Wallkill Board of Education , 7 p . m . Ostrander Elementary School , Wallkill . Shawangunk Town Board , 7 p . m . Town Hall , 14 Central Ave ., Wallkill . Crawford Town Board , 7 p . m . Town Hall , 121 Route 302 , Pine Bush .

MONDAY , MARCH 19

Valley Central Board of Education 6:30 p . m . Administration building , 944 Route 17K , Montgomery .

TUESDAY , MARCH 20 Pine Bush Board of Education . 7 p . m . Circleville Middle School .

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The Wallkill Valley Times , ( USPS 699-490 ) is a weekly newspaper published every Wednesday at Newburgh , N . Y . 12550 , with offices at 300 Stony Brook Court , Newburgh , N . Y . Single copy : $ 1 at newsstand . By mail in Orange , Ulster or Sullivan Counties : $ 40 annually , $ 44 out of county . Periodicals permit at Newburgh , N . Y . POSTMASTER : Send address changes to Wallkill Valley Times , 300 Stony Brook Court , Newburgh , N . Y . 12550

Larry Kraus John Ramos Daniel Svarczkopf

By TED REMSNYDER

With Deputy Mayor Sean Hoffman and Trustee Brenda Adams not seeking re-election this year , the seven-person Walden Village Board is slated for a significant overhaul when voters head to the polls on March 20 . Three candidates are on the ballot this year for three board seats , so Trustee John Ramos is expected to be re-elected , while residents Larry Kraus and Daniel Svarczkopf should claim their first terms on the council .

All three candidates for the two-year board terms are affiliated with the Walden United Party . There are no referendums on the ballot this year for voters to decide when the village balloting commences on Tuesday from 8 a . m . until 9 p . m . at Village Hall in the third floor Bradley Assembly Room .

Trustee John Ramos

Trustee John Ramos has served three years on the board , and is seeking his second full term on the council . He said he wants to stay on because he has unfinished business he wants to complete for the sake of the village . On the top of that list is getting a community center built in Walden . “ I ’ m running again because there ’ s a few good issues that I want to take care of ,” Ramos said . “ I ’ m working diligently for our community center and security for our schools . I want to work harder for our Parks and Recreation department , because they ’ re doing a phenomenal job , and I want us to blossom even more so we can keep the kids off of the street . We want to keep them active in whatever sports they can dig up . They ’ re doing a great job and they have my true support .”

Ramos , 60 , is an Air Force veteran who took an early retirement from the Department of Veterans Affairs and currently works for the New York State Thruway Authority as an Assistant Traffic Supervisor . The retired New York State Trooper has lived in Walden since 2006 , and his kids are enrolled in Walden Elementary School and Valley Central Middle School . Ramos acts as the board ’ s liaison with the Valley Central School District , and has been impressed with the diverse skill sets offered by all the trustees in his time with the village government . “ We ’ re all unique on this board ,” he noted . “ It was a great thing for the mayor to do to divide us all up and concentrate on one thing . We ’ re still concentrating on the village as a whole , but it gives us the opportunity to concentrate on one venue at a time so we ’ re not inundated with everything else . If everybody complies with what we ’ re supposed to be doing , we ’ re firing on all cylinders .”

Ramos is eager to work with the two new board members who are expected to be elected this month . “ We ’ ve had a good board , and I ’ m looking forward to working with the next board ,” he said . “ Hopefully we ’ ll be on the same page . We ’ ve been pretty fortunate that all of us are thinking about all the great things we want to do for the village .”

The board member aims to keep working for the community if he ’ s re-elected to another two-year term next week . “ I want to continue to fight for the village ,” Ramos said . “ I want to keep taxes low . I want to be transparent . People see me running up and down and I ’ m reachable any time . I just want the opportunity to finish what I set out to do .”

Larry Kraus

Local business owner Larry Kraus is hoping to bring his own unique brand of expertise to the board if he claims his first term on the panel this month . Kraus has owned the Hudson Valley Auto & Tire Center in Walden for the past 26 years , and the candidate believes that his decades of experience running the Orange Avenue auto repair shop will provide him with a nice perspective when he joins the board . “ I think my business experience will bring a lot to the board ,” he said . “ It can help in making commonsense decisions instead of just jumping onto something and taking it over . That ’ s what you have to do in business .”

Kraus , 63 , is looking to present a practical viewpoint when he joins the village government . “ I want to bring common sense and make good decisions for the people and the village ,” he said . “ I want to try to get things together for the village to hopefully bring more businesses in . We want to draw more people to come into the village .”

The candidate wants the village to flourish economically and for business to expand in Walden . “ I want to make everything better for everyone involved , the village and residents ,” Kraus said . “ We want to make it so that people want to stay in Walden rather than moving out of the village . I want to keep Walden prosperous and to make sure it keeps growing . We need to grow .”

Even with only three candidates on the ballot for three slots on the board , Kraus is hopeful that voters will remain engaged and show enthusiasm for the new candidates up for election this year . “ It ’ s hard to get people to come out to vote ,

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