Former Saratoga Springs city attorney to seek council seat

Former Saratoga Springs City Attorney Sarah Burger plans to run for the five-member City Council.

Former City Attorney Sarah Burger plans to run for the five-member City Council she advised until resigning her position six months ago, meaning she may challenge one of the four incumbent Democrats.

Burger, a Democrat, confirmed Wednesday rumors that have recently swirled around City Hall. Though she declined to say which of the five council seats she’s seeking, she said she’ll pursue a Democratic endorsement following her official campaign announcement next week.

“As an attorney, I advocate for the rights of others, and as a City Council member, I will advocate to make Saratoga Springs a better place to live and do business,” she said in an email.

All five council seats are up for election in November.

A city native, Burger works for the Saratoga Springs law firm of Cooper Erving & Savage, where she specializes in employment litigation, labor law, public- and private-sector labor relations and contract negotiation. She was appointed to serve as part-time city attorney by Mayor Joanne Yepsen last year, but left abruptly in September after citing a “fundamental disagreement” on how to handle the city’s legal matters.

Burger was at odds with several members of the council over the controversial sale of the city-owned Collamer lot on Broadway to developer Joel Aronson last summer. She pushed for a new appraisal of the 0.48-acre parcel after a last-minute offer for the property came in at nearly double the $775,000 sale price from Aronson.

City Democratic Committee Chairman Charles Brown said he’s heard rumors of Burger’s run, but has not yet been approached by the prospective candidate about what seat she is targeting. He said her announcement next week likely won’t do much for the already-strained relations among the four Democrats on the council.

“Primary challenges for a seat are never the best thing for a party, but it is a democratic process, so we’ll go through it as cleanly as we can,” he said. “Very rarely does it turn out that everybody is cheerful at the end of these things.”

Brown said the Democrats are already contending with strained internal relations resulting from a contentious lawsuit against the city over the Collamer lot deal filed by three former commissioners — all members of the party. He said the legal action poses the most significant obstacle to the party’s fortunes in the fall.

“And if she takes a position that is supporting the lawsuit, she’s going to be adding fuel to that fire,” he said.

Public Safety Commissioner Chris Mathiesen, a Democrat, was surprised to learn of Burger’s political aspirations. Though wanting to hear more about her plans before commenting, he said her premature departure from City Hall doesn’t bode well.

“I would be surprised that she would run for city office considering that things didn’t work so well with her job in City Hall,” he said.

Finance Commissioner Michele Madigan was also caught off guard by word of Burger’s plans. She said it would be unfortunate if Burger targets an incumbent Democrat.

“She was the first city attorney who had to resign within eight months of being appointed by the mayor by stating she couldn’t work with the rest of the council as it would compromise her integrity,” the Democrat said in an email.

Accounts Commissioner John Franck — the council’s longest tenured Democrat — said he had a good relationship with Burger when she worked in City Hall. He wished her the best, given the difficult road candidates face to gain office.

“I wish her the best because it’s a lot of work,” he said.

Public Works Commissioner Anthony “Skip” Scirocco, the lone Republican on the council, did not return a call for comment.

In response to her former appointee running for council, Yepsen said she anticipates “an interesting election year” and hopes for clean races.

“It is my hope that all candidates, especially those of us who are the current seated public officials, will maintain respectful interactions and promote issue-based dialogues,” she said in a text message.