Rachel Barnhart

I believe this is day 10 - the day the county has to reply to my three FOIL appeals. One involves a DWI that I don’t think was ever charged, the other two involve the mystery legal fees out of the jail trust fund. (Actually it’s not a mystery to me, but I want docs before saying anything publicly.)

We are using ARPA dollars to basically pay nursing homes to take people. It's not sustainable. Reimbursement rates need to cover the true cost of nursing home care.

The Cheesecake Factory is actually expensive! These takes are weird.

It's $134.9M - I sent them the docs given to the legislature but they keep reporting an old number. Too many price tags floating around. The number I provided is the correct, verified one.

Lunchtime walk on a gorgeous fall day

Important story about the state of the downtown hotel market. It's pretty bad. Hyatt is definitely getting upgrades, no construction date is set for Riverside yet and Wyndham is working through foreclosure.

Extremely supportive of Monroe County adopting Vision Zero.

This is a behind-the-scenes look at my experience canvassing this fall, including my one bad experience. I was heckled!

I’m just observing

Good evening from North Winton Village

More than 2,000 doors knocked this fall. I did a primary’s worth of doors before primary season has begun. I’ll tell you what voters told me tomorrow!

Good afternoon from North Winton Village

It's really hard for regular people to run for office, Exhibit #263544

What a tough situation — $1000 increase in rent

Early voting begins today! You can look up your voter information and view your ballot here: www.monroecounty.gov/elections-vo...

The Inner Loop North project could provide an opportunity for geothermal

We held a Legislator Town Hall in Irondequoit last evening, where residents asked about becoming a sanctuary county (I say yes!), pedestrian safety, the zoo project, and so much more. It’s great to connect with people about issues important to them and our community.

Congratulations to @cityofrochester.bsky.social for reaching this milestone. The city's water system and infrastructure have been well-maintained.

On the one hand, I welcome conservative MAGA folks advocating for this man. On the other hand, he's one of thousands in same situation, and they continue to cheer on their detention and deportation. Have hearts and minds really changed?

Do gun buybacks prevent crime? Overall, probably not. Could they prevent a crime? Sure. It's a tool in the toolkit.

I disagree with this take. Pangram is not 100% accurate. AI has real uses in PR. Those who use it to improve communication are not always being inauthentic — if they know what they’re doing. AI tools are only as good as the inputs and the decision-making of the user.

Diversifying housing stock is important for families that can't afford to buy and seniors to age in place. We are not building enough housing that matches where people are in life.

It's just a bad policy that will further erode public schools. www.npr.org/2026/10/20/n...

I don’t totally understand the end of The Diplomat, but well done.

If the ballots have all been mailed, I'm not seeing the issue, as it's well before Election Day. The headline makes it seem like voters have to do something to solve a problem that has been solved.

The devil's in the details, but at first glance, these seem like good proposals. Reusing vacant buildings for housing and building on vacant lots makes sense.

Calling out a lawmaker on maternity leave and another in the reserves. Bad look, NY Post.

I don't like using cases where a guy is out on bail as a reason we need bail reform. Bail. Was. Set. The main complaints are about judges who don't set bail at all.

I have to explain to people the primary is next June, and I make a lot of jokes like, "Hopefully, I am not so early I'm late!" 😂

There’s still a little daylight left! 🍁☀️ I’ve knocked on nearly 2,000 doors since August, and I’m squeezing in as many as I can before the clocks change. I’ve been taking notes along the way. When I wrap up for the season, I’ll share what you’ve been telling me. Full report coming soon.

Amazing day at Laughing Gull Chocolates, my next door neighbor. This new mural, by Forever Spring Studio, is gorgeous. Building community through chocolate and art!

Monroe County allocated $4.2M in ARPA funding to hook up more than 6,000 homes and business in high poverty ZIP codes. Only 857 signed up, and the program was reduced to $2.7M. I predicted this would happen a year ago.

The Diplomat is not disappointing.

The dashboard and the report on automated enforcement are extremely well done. The city is doing a great job using data and public input as it works toward Vision Zero.

You know who is not gaslit… members of the public

Still not over Tuesday's proceedings. It felt like I was in the upside down. A medical provider that caused a man's death was no longer the risk. Scrutinizing the company became the risk.

I don't understand why the state couldn't give a developer the funds to develop housing at the site. Instead, Wilmorite gets an upfront payout, the parcel comes off tax rolls, and town has to keep up property. Genuinely asking if I'm missing something.

Sen. Gillibrand being a friend to the crypto industry was not on my bingo card.

Extremely excited about The Diplomat's return. You may not see me for a couple days.

My write-up: rachbarnhart.substack.com/p/the-commit...

The plan was to do the damn review. www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/l...

The president of the legislature is still protecting the Sheriff and his vendor/donor. What happened last night is sickening. She and many of my colleagues showed up selling a made-up story that the jail medical provider would walk away if we take control of the contract.

Tomorrow’s Substack: The Committee to Review PrimeCare Might be a Sham. (I hope I’m proved wrong.)

I need a minute to explain what just happened. That was … a total disgrace.