Last week, Gov. Kathy Hochul’s administration released state agency reports and plans for improving transparency. Around the same time, the Olympic Regional Development Authority said it would appeal a judge’s order for transparency on certain accident records requested by the Adirondack Explorer.
You can also read ORDA’s transparency plan here, along with the Adirondack Park Agency’s and the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s. The APA appears to be taking some steps, including issuing a press release today on projects out for public comment. Typically I would have to watch the website on a near-daily basis to see if any new projects were on the docket. This is a change to have a press release.
This led to our latest story about a Miami-based developer proposing a development on 350 acres in Jay. You can check out the initial story here, as well as initial reactions to it here
Image of proposed development courtesy of APA
Editor’s note: This first appeared in Gwen’s weekly “Adirondack Report” newsletter. Click here to sign up
In my experience there is often a huge disconnect between so-called “sunshine laws” and proclamations and what the situation is on the ground. No matter what the governor says she isn’t changing all the staff overnight, and those folks have been steeped for years in the system that thwarts public disclosure at every turn. I have observed this same problem in local government and with any bureaucracy that has existed more than a few years. The old guard does things their way no matter what the current leaders are saying or doing.