GP,
I think a lot of what you've said has some merit. Most of the modstaff on ECCIE is drastically overwhelmed right now, I don't think any of us expected ECCIE to take off like it did. It's amazing, we've doubled the "most people online" that there ever was on the site and we've done it with less staff members. That being said, moderators do what they can, when they can. I'm blessed to own my own business and sit in front of a computer for most of the day and can generally get to issues fairly quickly.
I don't know how feasible it's going to be to have 1 mod from each major city that is represented in Upstate NY. My suggestion is to work on getting 1 or 2 more mod's from that general direction (meaning U. NY area). As the area grows add more staff members to accommodate the growth.
FWIW, many forums on ECCIE have an Admin listed in the modstaff list so we get the email alerts and updates even though we don't have much time to actively contribute to the forums.
To anyone that is wanting or willing to step up, please take some time to read the ECCIE mission statement. Make sure you not only believe in that statement but are willing to adhere to it. Also know that once you put on the "mod hat" your view of the hobby will forever be changed...how you take that is entirely up to you.
LAP