NIAGARA FALLS — Gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino played to the home crowd on Wednesday, telling a group of Niagara County business leaders about his plan to reform New York’s expensive government and bring down the state’s “ruling class.”

Serving as guest speaker during an event sponsored by the Niagara USA Chamber of Commerce at the Rapids Theatre on Main Street, the owner of Ellicott Development Co. and developer of the Giacomo Hotel in downtown Niagara Falls said New York’s business owners and taxpayers have suffered for far too long under an oppressive and derelict system of government run by politicians and “people in suits” who forgot long ago what it means to be a true servant of the public good.

“Public service is an honor,” said Paladino, who told the crowd he has no intentions of seeking a second term in office if he is elected governor in November. “It’s not a right. It’s not a job. It’s not a career.”

Up first in Paladino’s election bid is a Sept. 14 primary election in which he will attempt to defeat the statewide Republican Party’s preferred candidate for governor, Rick Lazio. In recent weeks, Paladino’s campaign has gained significant ground on Lazio. Niagara County GOP leaders changed their mind and switched their endorsement to Paladino last month as did the members of other county Republican parties in other parts of the state. Recent polls show Paladino’s campaign is not faring as well when matched up against Democratic candidate and New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo.

Paladino didn’t sound worried.

“Mr. Lazio will be defeated by Carl Paladino on Sept. 14 in the Republican primary because you are going to do something very unique this year,” a confident Paladino declared.

Paladino said he didn’t put much stock into the polls, especially in Cuomo’s case whom he accused of ducking all the important issues and avoiding having to answer any of the tough questions. Paladino encouraged local business leaders to do all they can this fall to convince their friends, relatives and business partners to head to the polls this year, arguing that the 2010 election offers a rare opportunity for average citizens to overthrow the career politicians who have been “feeding at the trough” in Albany for years.

On Cuomo, Paladino said: “I wouldn’t have spent $3 million of my own money already if I didn’t think I could take him down. Trust me, he’s coming down.”

State Sen. George Maziarz, R-Newfane, who was among a group of Niagara County GOP leaders who changed their endorsement from Lazio to Paladino earlier this year, expressed confidence that the Buffalo developer’s message is beginning to resonate with voters. Maziarz said he now believes Paladino is most likely of all the candidates in the race to address concerns Western New Yorkers have raised for years, only to be ignored by interests downstate.

“The press and the pundits will tell you that the race is already over,” Maziarz said. “I don’t believe that.”

As for his platform, Paladino said he’ll take a no-nonsense approach to dealing with state government and his primary ambition involves “shining a spotlight” on the “rodents” in Albany, especially those running New York’s so-called “three-men-in-a-room” system. If elected governor, Paladino said he would invite members of the press corps to attend meetings involving the Senate Majority leader and the Speaker of the Assembly, two of the three most powerful positions in state government that have often been linked by critics to backroom deals on key policy and budgetary issues. Paladino said he also would hold sway over the state’s budget process by instituting a March 31 cutoff for approval by state lawmakers who would face a “shut down” of state government services with the exception of health and public safety if they failed to get the job done by the deadline.

“When we take away the money, we take away the power,” Paladino said.

When asked by Rapids Theatre owner and Town of Niagara businessman John Hutchins what he would do to address Niagara County’s lingering distinction as one of the highest taxed counties in America, Paladino said the first place to start was the state’s Medicaid system, which he believes can be trimmed by about $20 billion simply by rooting out fraud and reducing wasteful spending. Paladino noted that Medicaid accounts for roughly 60 percent of the average taxpayer’s county property tax bill.

“We will cut the county taxes by cutting the Medicaid costs statewide,” Paladino said.

In Niagara Falls itself, Paladino said the answer to improving the business climate can be found in the size of the government. He said he lobbied years ago with city officials to trim the number of municipal employees so property taxes could be reduced locally. On Tuesday, he said as the city’s population has declined over the years, so should have the city’s workforce. Instead, he said, the city continues to employ upwards of 800 employees, far more than he thinks it needs.

Beyond municipal government, Paladino said more needs to be done to get developers with interests in the downtown area to actually do something, saying “everybody’s just sitting around.” He singled out the “character” from New York City, a reference to Niagara Falls Redevelopment backer and billionaire Howard Milstein as a prime example of what’s wrong downtown, suggesting NFR’s principal should do something with the land he’s accumulated in the city or step aside and let someone else do it. Paladino also referenced another downtown “character” in David Cordish, owner of the former Rainbow Centre Mall as another person with ties to the city who needs to be held to a higher development standard.  

“They are not interested in developing,” Paladino said. “They are interested in making money off of somebody else’s efforts.”

If elected, Paladino said he would work to change the city’s fortunes, saying: “My goal is a skyline to match the skyline across the river.”

Paladino said he also intends to assist communities across the state by taking aim at public agencies and authorities that are costing taxpayers a lot of money but offering little in terms of return. He was especially critical of two higher tier operations within the state government system, including the New York State Education Department and the New York State Power Authority. Paladino said he would vigorously pursue reform within the state education system and would push for consolidation of local school districts, saying 19 in one county like Niagara is too many and far too costly.

He lamented the so-called sweep of more than $500 million of surplus power authority revenue into the state’s coffers earlier this year and promised he would do everything within the power of the governor’s office to reign in the authority.

“I can assure you that the power authority’s days are numbered,” Paladino said.

When asked about one of the hottest topics facing the state today, Paladino said, if elected governor, he would take the steps necessary to ensure all applicable tax laws are enforced on sold at convenience stores and gasoline stations operated by the Seneca Nation of Indians. He said he believed in the rule of law and said elected officials should not make exceptions when it comes to enforcing the rules.

“If they law says they should be collecting and paying sales tax, they should be collecting and paying taxes,” he said.

Paladino also took aim at the Seneca Nation’s gaming compact with the state, saying as governor he would move to re-open the agreement to prevent the Senecas from using the 50 acres of downtown land they received under the current deal. He said he would allow the Senecas to continue to run the Seneca Niagara Casino and Hotel but would not allow the nation to develop additional properties unless they agreed to follow the same rules as other business owners downtown.  

“That’s it,” he said. “No more. No more hotels, unless you are going to pay taxes.”

Paladino has had a few public relations snafus since hitting the campaign trail. Early on, it was revealed that he forwarded racially insensitive e-mails to some of his friends. In recent weeks, he received criticism after unveiling a controversial proposal to turn former prisons into dorms to be used by welfare recipients as part of a state-sponsored job training and life lessons program.

During the forum, Paladino admitted to his supporters that he’s not perfect and he’s made some enemies already. After his time on stage, he told reporters he felt as though some of his ideas and a few of his statements have been misinterpreted by the media, causing unwarranted confusion about his true intentions as a candidate for the state’s highest public office.

“I’m not looking to get re-elected,” Paladino said. “I’m not looking to join the friends and family club.”