Remarks for Barbara Rice mark her 2-year anniversary of leading Adirondack Park Agency
By Gwendolyn Craig
The chairman and communications director of the Adirondack Park Agency spent some of Thursday’s APA board meeting praising the agency’s executive director of the past two years, while welcoming a cohort of newly hired staff, including a top lawyer.
Chairman John Ernst highlighted Barbara Rice’s past experience serving in the state Executive Chamber working as an assistant for economic development. He called Rice, named executive director in March 2022, his “rock and my right hand.”
Shortly after, APA Communications Director Keith McKeever recounted five visits he and Rice made to town supervisors in the park. He, too, spoke of Rice’s past work in local government as being “super beneficial in building these relationships” and how she is “really great at getting people to talk to her and listening.”
The testimonials for Rice came just shy of three weeks after state Inspector General’s Office agents showed up and conducted interviews at the Ray Brook headquarters. The APA and the Inspector General’s Office have declined to comment on the reasons for the visit, but online records show a complaint involving “corruption” at the agency was filed in September.
APA leaders did not mention the Inspector General during the meeting, the first since the agents’ visit.
“Doing the work of overseeing public and private land use in a park that is a globally unique conservation model is not easy, and would you believe every once in a while one can be subject to critics,” Ernst continued. He praised Rice’s work, thanked her and concluded with “you make my job invigorating and fun.”
Rice said she was blushing. “Every day has been just roses here, so I can’t complain,” she said, adding “it was completely true.”
During the agency’s public comment period, Bob Glennon, the APA’s former executive director and lawyer, asked Rice about her proposal to move the agency’s headquarters from Ray Brook to Saranac Lake. The agency has $29 million in state funding for its headquarters.
Rice has spearheaded an effort to relocate to the former Paul Smith’s Power and Light Building on Main Street in the village, where the local police force is currently housed. The move would require erecting an adjacent 19,000 square-foot building. The APA is doing a feasibility study on the proposed relocation to Saranac Lake, which Rice has called the “preferred site.”
Many village trustees and stakeholders have expressed support for the move, while many former APA officials have raised logistical and ethical concerns about pulling stakes. In a public letter, they cited Rice’s business and local government ties to Saranac Lake. The move also relies on the village building a public safety complex where the police could relocate. Both projects involve APA permits.
The public safety complex, proposed at the former St. Pius X High School on Petrova Avenue, was recently part of a federal funding bill called the Consolidated Appropriations Act. In it, the village was awarded $4.5 million. Republican Congresswoman Elise Stefanik highlighted the project among more than a dozen upstate New York projects she said she advocated to be in the bill.
Rice told Glennon she expects “sometime in April that everything will be complete” and a decision on the relocation will be made with Gov. Kathy Hochul’s administration, the Office of General Services and the Division of the Budget. Glennon also asked if there would be an open house for APA alumni at the current headquarters, to which Rice said there would be.
New staff
McKeever and Rice also announced three new staff to the approximately 54-person agency.
New York City attorney Damion K.L. Stodola began his position as the agency’s counsel on Feb. 20. Stodola worked for 6 1/2 years at the New York City Commission on Human Rights as its general counsel, and was senior counsel for the City of New York from 2012 to 2017 under former Mayors Michael Bloomberg and Bill de Blasio. He is a law graduate from McGill University, according to his LinkedIn page.
Rice said Stodola’s legal experience included defending New York City and the commission “on all aspects of civil and municipal litigation including administrative action under Article 78.” Article 78 proceedings are lawsuits that involve appeals of state agency decisions. The APA has recently been involved in several lawsuits over various permits.
“I’m deeply passionate about the park, and I’m thrilled to join,” Stodola said. “I’m looking forward to learning from everyone.”
Stodola is looking to move with his family to the Adirondacks, and Rice asked if anyone had any housing leads.
Former Counsel Christopher Cooper left the agency in September, and Associate Counsel Sarah Reynolds had been serving as counsel in the interim.
Ben Brosseau, current director of communications at the Adirondack Mountain Club, will be leaving the organization to become an assistant public communications officer at the APA. McKeever said Brosseau “has 21st century communication skills,” and will be working on digital media “to expand the work that hasn’t been getting done here, honestly.”
Brosseau is starting at the APA in April with his last day at ADK will be March 29. Brosseau told the Explorer he is excited about the new position. ADK does not yet have a replacement.
Rice also introduced Angela Bates as the new executive assistant at the agency. Bates will oversee scheduling meetings, agendas and minutes, coordinate services, and follow up with various action items, Rice said. Previously, Bates was an executive administrative assistant at St. Joseph’s Addiction Treatment and Recovery Centers in Saranac Lake. She has an associate’s degree in business administration and management from North Country Community College.
Adirondack policy, in plain speak
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Can’t just say something nice and leave it at that, can you Gwen?
That’s NOT the job of a reporter. A reporter simply writes the facts of the story including any “backstory” that exists on the topic at hand.
Thank you Gwen, for doing your job honestly.
That’s not what I meant. What I meant was the IG story had nothing to do with the board meeting last week. She could have reported on what actually occurred at the meeting instead of trying to rake muck for clicks. Wouldn’t be so tough though when the Agency wins a court case (or when things the agency does well happen) they don’t get reported. It’s about muckraking, Dale.
There are zero facts that indicate that Rice is any part of the IG’s investigation. There is an investigation yes, but here the main part of the story is about a meeting where the staff were announcing new staff changes, and praising each other for past work.
Putting the two things together is a neat way to make it sound like they are connected – we call it spin. Just because Rice supports the idea of a move to Saranac Lake and that some past staff are opposed – is just what it is. I would hope that a director would support things that she thinks would be good for the organization. That’s what we are paying her for. Why anyone would want to work in public service these days is beyond me given how they are treated, now even in the local press. That was an outlet where I thought you could get what you suggest -“just the facts”.
Hi This is Walt Adams with Lake George Radio, perhaps we could entertain the idea of a partnership and calibrate on sharing stories of the North country, and interviews with your staff.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Walt
“Stodola worked for 6 1/2 years at the New York City Commission on Human Rights as its general counsel, and was senior counsel for the City of New York from 2012 to 2017 under former Mayors Michael Bloomberg and Bill de Blasio.”
They hired a civil rights attorney to be counsel for a land use agency? Interesting choice.
Don’t feel too bad Paul. The article does cover/conflate it a little but it was said at the board meeting yesterday that prior to the human rights commission he did extensive work with the office of corporation counsel on municipal/land use items including heavily with article 78 litigation. Maybe a change from the status quo is a good thing, especially considering the article 78’s the agency had been mired in with prior general counsels and their staff attorneys.
“The move also relies on the village building a public safety complex where the police could relocate.”
Isn’t the plan to renovate the buildings that are already there? I know that the fire department is very keen on moving there and being with the police. At least that is what the fire chief has said.
Considering the odd testimonials for Rice I think we can surmise who the inspector general is investigating.
When the two visitor interpretive centers were built the APA did a similar presentation about how great it would be to manage them, despite many believing the DEC should get that task. A few years later the APA was told to cut its budget by 10% and the VICs went right out the door.
Things are never what they seem at the APA.
What is odd about saying that the boss is doing a good job? I wouldn’t insinuate anything. Just see what the report says when it comes out. Also, on this.. “Glennon also asked if there would be an open house for APA alumni at the current headquarters, to which Rice said there would be.”. This is an interesting request. The state is not paying for their travel costs I hope.
Just give the poor woman some space so she can do her job. She is already a very respected business person in the area, she doesn’t need this job. I really think she is trying to help people and make the park better for everybody.
Agree 100% Paul. It’s unfortunate that some of the people that work there who would rather submit untrue claims to the inspector general and that rat to the press that the IG is at the office to embarrass her don’t see it. There’s no way the explorer finds this out without some disloyal and disgruntled employee leaking it despite likely warnings from the inspector general not to…..