How many elected officials (and consultants) does it take to screw in a lightbulb? Who knows, but you can guarantee it’s going to be a pricey endeavor.

Today, Akiko Matsuda reports that Orangeburg Library, which rents space from the Town of Orangetown and pays its own utility bills, ended up getting a big bill ($18,000) when the building was retrofitted as part of a townwide energy audit by Siemens Building Technology. The problem is, no one in the town seemed to explain to the library that it would have to pay upfront for the upgrade. Sure, its electricity bills are expected to go down, but that’s  a multi-year recoup of the cost it has to cover in the here-and-now.

The town entered into a 15-year contract for an “energy improvement program.” The program costs $3.2 million including interest, and the town has been awarded $245,000 in federal highway aid as well as $90,000 from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority toward the project.  The town expects to save $3.9 million from the audit. Now, some say that’s hardly worth the effort, considering it’s only estimated, but one also has to consider the savings in natural resources, not just the cost of resources.

Energy savings may be smart, but fully informing all involved, and making sure the investment can be paid for, is smarter.

Today, my local deli offered free coffee and doughnuts to veterans. They are participants in Rockland County Veteran Affairs’ “Return the F.A.V.O.R.” program, in which vets get discounts at local merchants. That make me want to go back again, above and beyond the nice sandwiches they make.

This Veterans Day  comes amid war, amid the horrific recent losses of those who serve at Fort Hood. It comes as reports continue of increased TBIs and other injuries inflicted on troops. It comes as the Army seeks answers to continued high suicide rates. It comes as the death toll in Afghanistan continues to climb. It comes as the president continues to weigh a troop buildup there, and carve out a clear mission.

A free cup of coffee to help with such a weight? Yes. Any kind of support that we can give, we should, big and small. That can mean giving to local agencies that help veterans, organizing gift bags for troops abroad, supporting  local veterans groups. And supporting the deli that supports the troops.

If you or your organization supports veterans in some way, let us know. Add it here.

Nyack’s Halloween Parade took place this year on the actual day, which some merchants and families thought was great. Personally, I like to stretch it out some, and the combo of a Saturday and parade day pushed the trick-or-treating kind of late. (Some could say that’s good, or bad, same as my observation that my bunch didn’t seem to bring in as much candy…)

No matter when it is, Nyack’s parade is always in the vicinity of election time, and this year’s was closer to the actual day than any I can recall. Oddly, I saw few candidates.

County executive candidates were there, of course. Incumbent C. Scott Vanderhoef’s crew carried signs, but I didn’t see anyone dressed up. Scott wore a Yankees jacket—kind of a costume, amid World Series Yankee mania. Many of challenger Thom Kleiner’s supporters were costumed, but the candidate himself wore a suit and tie. They marched one behind the other (Vanderhoef first).

I remember a couple years ago, the sheriff’s candidates went all out. Incumbent Rockland County Sheriff James Kralik and his mounted patrol rode their horses (there were other horses that year, too, I recall, but none this year. Odd). Challenger Tim O’Neill wore a Western Sheriff costume, with the chaps and the pointed star.

I guess it’s difficult to be running for public office and choosing a costume. I imagine the jokes could never end.

FILE PHOTO: This guy was at the parade in 2003, so it’s not a commentary on the  candidates’ boring costumeless Halloween this year.

An article today about a family’s dog shot and killed by a bow hunter in Tackamack Park/Blauvelt State Park elicited more than a hundred responses by mid-day. Many blast all hunting, others started fingerpointing because dogs off-leash aren’t allowed in the park, where hunting, of course, is banned too.

One reader believed the hunter, or as many pointed out, poacher, should have stepped forward:

This “hunter” should be caught and prosecuted for poaching. A husky doesn’t resemble a deer or a coyote. What I find worrisome is that this person, whoever he is, did not come forward and say anything to the owners of the dog. Not “I’m sorry” or “I didn’t mean to do this.”

Sadly, a situation like this overshadows hunters, such as myself, who exercise great caution and consideration for the surroundings which enable us to enjoy our chosen sport.

The person who shot this dog was no more a “hunter” than a street drug dealer is a pharmacist. Since hunting is illegal in the town park, the shooter was a poacher, not a hunter.

He was quick with a lollipop to soothe the sting of a shot. He made house calls at all hours of the night to check in on his young patients. The families he served for decades are mourning the loss of Dr. Sidney William Berezin, who died Oct. 12. He was 89.

Dr. Berezin was the first pediatrician to open a practice in Rockland, his family said. He retired just four years ago, at age 85.
Dr. Elliot Siegal, president of Clarkstown Pediatrics, said that he considered it a privilege to work with Berezin. “He was really an old-school doctor,” Dr. Siegal said today, between seeing patients. “He really loved what he did and did it very well.”

Dr. Berezin joined Clarkstown Pediatrics, one of the county’s largest practices, when he was in his mid 70s. That way, he could ease up on the night and weekend calls. In the guestbook for his obituary on LoHud, though, several remembered his house calls, and kindness (and lollipops).

One former patient wrote:

For many years as a child I was sick with asthma and had to make many trips to Dr. Berezin and every visit he made me feel better with just the way he used to make me laugh and his incredible way that he would calm my fears. … My mother and I both cried today learning of his passing.

This weekend, I got a call from Penny Jennings, who singlehandedly launched a mentoring program, Adults Caring For Teens, Inc., to tell me

she’s a delegate to this year’s Education Project, which takes place in Bahrain and addresses the future of education around the world. She’s also a presenter, joining a discussion on “Empowering Students, Parents and the Community.” Right up her alley.

Penny launched ACT in 2002, wanting a place that matched mentors with young people, no matter their age or their history of trouble. She now leads programs throughout Rockland and has lined up the honors for her hard work on behalf of young people. (She was the state Senate’s  2008 New York State Woman of Distinction, and she’s also a member of the Rockland Community College Board of Trustees — she started her higher education journey there, and finished it this year with a Ph.D. from Northeastern University in Boston. She earned the Ph.D.—no kidding, commuting to Boston from Rockland—while running all ACT’s programs.)

Now, she’s on the world stage. While it’s an amazing feat, it’s not a surprising one for those who know Penny.

Yesterday’s endorsement hearings (Rockland County Legislature District 14, Clarkstown Town Board and Nyack mayor and trustee candidates) went pretty well. We had 100 percent attendance, and informative Q&A.  See for yourself at the Editorial Spotlight archives, www.lohud.com/editorialspotlight.

Tomorrow, the Spring Valley candidates get their turn. The mayoral candidates are at 11 a.m. and trustees at noon. Watch them live, or check out the sessions later, at www.lohud.com/editorialspotlight, or check out the session later.

I asked a couple days ago if anyone wanted to submit questions for the candidates. I received some ideas for Nyack, Clarkstown and the Legislature. Now, to Spring Valley. Want to help with questions? Post them here, or e-mail them to ncutler@lohud.com.

But wait, there’s more! We’ll continue the interviews through Oct. 21. Here’s the full endorsement schedule. (Rockland’s on the second page.)

I’m prepping for the four endorsement hearings scheduled for tomorrow (Tuesday) and Thursday. Want to help with questions? Post them here, or e-mail them to ncutler@lohud.com. You can suggest questions for any contested race. Or, you can use Livestream during the endorsement hearings. Here’s this week’s schedule of hearings:

Tuesday, Oct. 6

1 p.m. – Rockland County Legislature District 14 

 2:30 p.m. – Clarkstown Town Board 

3:30 p.m. – Nyack Village mayor

4:30 p.m. – Nyack Village trustees

 Thursday, Oct. 8

 11 a.m. – Spring Valley mayor

12 p.m. – Spring Valley trustees

Here’s the full endorsement schedule. (Rockland’s on the second page.) Tune in to LoHud.com when the interviews are being webstreamed live, or check the Editorial Spotlight archives at anytime to review the candidates in your county, town or village at www.lohud.com/editorialspotlight.

Today, we have an editorial about Rockland Community College, which marks its 50th anniversary this week.

Last night, U.S. Rep. Eliot Engel sent out a press release announcing that the just-passed House-passed fiscal year 2010 Energy and Water Appropriations bill contained $300,000 for RCC that the college plans to use to upgrade and replace six science labs supporting instruction in biology, engineering, and physics.

RCC President Cliff Wood said in the statement:  “It is very important for the college to have state-of-the-art science laboratories.  We have a large nursing program and it is crucial to have these upgrades in order to give them a quality education.”

The legislation is an extension of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act’s investment in scientific research education, Engel said in the press release.  “RCC plays such an important role in the economic development of Rockland County, as well as the educational development of Rockland’s youth,” he said.

That is true; that is what a strong two-college does for a community. It offers real access to higher education.

2004 FILE PHOTO:  John Butler of Verizon, left, talks to RCC nursing students Flo Leighton of Nanuet, and Mary Inniss of Spring Valley at the RCC Foundation leadership awards luncheon at the Holiday Inn and Conference Center in Suffern.

I spent the morning at the Summit on Financing Tappan Zee Bridge & I-287 Corridor, hosted by Rockland County Legislature Chairwoman Harriet Cornell at Rockland Community College.

I learned a lot about rocks. Not the kind you find smashed up by Tilcon into gravel for roadways. No. Like the kind you look under for funding sources.

Seems financing discussions (especially when it’s about finding a base of $16 billion, let alone all the money on top of that to help with any debt service) brings out the comedian in everyone. Alas, it didn’t bring out any concrete answers on where the funding will come from. (Oh, no! It’s contagious! Look at that: concrete—rock… get it?) For those living under a rock, the TZB/I-287 Project will replace the Tappan Zee Bridge and revamp the 30-mile corridor between Port Chester and Suffern. The project will introduce a bus rapid transit system along the corridor, and commuter rail across Rockland to tie into the Hudson line and down to Grand Central Terminal. While the study for how to design and implement the project continues, so does the study of how to finance it.

New York State Department of Transportation Finance Manager Phil Ferguson started the rock talk rolling. During the morning session, he talked about looking under every rock for funding, talked about “the rocks we’ve looked at,” referring to traditional funding sources. At one point, when some suggestions were made for other funding approaches, he said, “Keep bringing us rocks.”

(He also made a crack about one graphic shown, an upside-down Isoscelese triangle showing how certain options were being narrowed. He called it the “Pink Floyd” chart.—I, of course, am too young to get the reference to the prism on the cover of the Dark Side of the Moon album.)

But the best witticism of the morning (and boy, we needed it) came from Chairwoman Cornell. After Joseph Ruggiero, director of strategic planning for the Office of New York State Comptroller, explained in excrutiating detail the financial struggles faced by the state (think phrases like “debt capacity”), he ended is talk by saying, “Sorry to rain on your parade.” Cornell returned to the podium and said, “Ushers from the State of New York will be passing among you with little caps.”