Supervisor Christopher P. St. Lawrence of the Town of Ramapo in Rockland County formally announced today that he is running for Lieutenant Governor of the State of New York. St. Lawrence made his announcement outside Kolmar Laboratories in Port Jervis, which is in Orange County.
St. Lawrence is a 5-term Town Supervisor, 2-term Rockland County Legislator, Chairman of the Rockland County Solid Waste Management Authority, Chairman of the Ramapo River Watershed Council, and Vice Chairman of the Rockland County Sewer District #1. With 120,000 residents, the Town of Ramapo is the most populous town in the state outside of Long Island.
“New Yorkers crave change and require real relief,” said St. Lawrence. “We need to resolve the problems of New York, recognize the potential of New York, and renew the promise of New York. We have to celebrate New York and focus on guiding this great state into the future. We must work collaboratively to strengthen our finances, lower our taxes, and protect our quality of life. Together, we can blaze a trail to a brighter future and a better state.”
St. Lawrence said that his campaign will focus on economic development, creating new jobs, and reining in the rising property taxes that are crippling New Yorkers.
“We need to fire up New York’s economic engine, generate jobs, and stabilize the state’s finances,” said St. Lawrence. “We have to implement economic development initiatives that will help solidify our state’s financial framework and bolster the many small businesses throughout New York that are the lifeblood of our state. New Yorkers are hurting and we need throw them the economic lifeline that they desperately need.”
As Supervisor of the largest and most diverse town in Rockland County, St. Lawrence has established a reputation as a hardworking and progressive leader who has initiated innovative programs that have improved the quality of life for Ramapo residents. St. Lawrence has successfully held the line on property taxes and strengthened the Town’s finances, preserved thousands of acres of open space, enhanced Ramapo’s parks and recreation programs, worked with local law enforcement to make Ramapo the safest town in America, and fought the rate hike proposals that would have increased Ramapo residents’ monthly utility bills.
St. Lawrence hails from a family that has a long and distinguished record of community service. His late father, the Honorable Joseph T. St. Lawrence, was a New York State Assemblyman, a Rockland County Legislator, the Rockland County Treasurer and a Ramapo Councilman.
Kolmar Laboratories, which is the largest color cosmetics manufacturer in North America, employs 500 people, making it the largest employer in Port Jervis and one of the largest employers in Orange County. St. Lawrence noted that after making its home in Port Jervis for the past 66 years, Kolmar Labs may be forced to relocate out of state because the cost of doing business in New York State is considerably more than in other states. A move out of state would result in the loss of the 500 jobs that currently exist at the Port Jervis facility. St. Lawrence spoke about how critical it is to ensure that companies like Kolmar Labs remain in New York.
“We need to do everything we can to keep businesses in New York,” said St. Lawrence. “Every time a company is forced to leave the state because it can no longer afford to do business in New York, our economy takes a direct hit. When hundreds of people suddenly find themselves out of work and on the unemployment line, the reverberations are felt in every corner of the state. We need to let people know that New York State is once again open for business.”
St. Lawrence said that over the next several months he will be traveling throughout the state and meeting with elected officials, party leaders, senior citizens, and working men and women to discuss the challenges and issues facing them.
Reported by The Rockland Review.
