Will Semenetz stay on Callicoon payroll?

Answer may come at January 14 meeting

By FRITZ MAYER

JEFFERSONVILLE, NY — The new supervisor of the Town of Callicoon is locked in a battle with members of the board over whether the former supervisor, who was voted out of office in November, will stay on the town payroll as a part-time code enforcement officer (CEO).

In a phone interview, board member Howard Fuchs, who is also the building inspector for the Town of Delaware, defended his position that the town needs someone in that position. He said that with growing demands from Albany being made on CEOs, one part-time employee is not sufficient to handle the workload. He said the neighboring Town of Delaware also needs an assistant CEO, although at this point neither Delaware nor the Town of Rockland, which has similar construction demands, has an assistant CEO.

Members of the community have said that the board voted to fund the position as a favor to Semenetz.

The conflict erupted at the organizational meeting of the Town of Callicoon, as newly elected supervisor Linda Babicz presided over her first meeting on January 2.

Although public comment is not normally scheduled into organizational meetings, Babicz, a Democrat, allowed some comment from the public before the new appointments got underway.

The first to speak was Democratic committee chairman Bill Engle, who made remarks about the value of loyalty but also reminded the board that the members had a duty to be careful when spending the public’s money, especially in a time such as this when some residents of the town were forced to choose between buying heating oil and gasoline. Next up was resident Dennis Findley, who questioned whether a certain town position that was to be appointed was really necessary.

Neither man mentioned the specifics, but most in the room knew that the remarks were aimed at the newly budgeted sum of $19,000 for the assistant CEO code position to be filled by Semenetz, and additional money budgeted for a secretary for the CEOs. The funding for the positions was approved at the last meeting presided over by Semenetz in December 2007.

When Babicz arrived at the part of the meeting where the two appointments were to be considered, she held up a chart comparing the code enforcement budgets of three towns in 2007: Rockland, with a budget of $17,929, issued 150 building permits; Delaware, with a budget of $23,690, issued 95 building permits, and Callicoon, with a budget of $25,481, issued 99 building permits. The projected budget with the two new positions is $69,048.

There were catcalls from the audience as Babicz went over the figures. Board member Tom Bose defended the position to be taken by Semenetz, saying the former supervisor had served in the position in an unpaid capacity up until now. Babicz countered that she would be willing to serve the same function in an unpaid capacity. Two board members responded that she was not qualified, although audience members interjected that she could become qualified within a matter of months.

The board members agreed to table the appointments.

On another issue, the board would not give ground. Babicz said she had been courted by a couple of different law firms that want to become the town’s legal counsel. She wanted to table the appointment of Attorney Marvin Newberg. The board members objected, saying that the town needed a lawyer right away. Danette Mall, a member of the planning board, said that Newberg had refused to show up at planning meetings when requested. Bose said that the issue should be discussed, but the appointment should go forward. Bose, a Republican, along with Republican council members Dave Kuebler and Fuchs and Democrat Charles Schadt, voted to appoint Newberg.

Babicz’s appointment of Joe Cullen, a Democrat who ran for a seat on the board but lost, to be deputy supervisor was also contentious. The board balked on approving the measure that allows the supervisor and deputy supervisor to sign town checks. Specifically, Bose objected to allowing a person who is not a member of the board to sign checks in Babicz’ absence. Babicz explained that the former deputy supervisor, Fuchs, had declined her invitation to remain in that position, and she had various reasons not to offer the position to the others on the board.

If the measure had remained unpassed, it could have disrupted local government with no one authorized to sign paychecks or checks for bills. After a brief standoff, punctuated with more catcalls mostly in support of Babicz, Schadt moved the check-signing measure, and Bose changed his position and seconded it. There was some question as to whether the board actually voted on the measure, so they voted to approve it again at a work session meeting on January 4.

The drama at the organizational meeting unfolded with the town’s former county representative, Rodney Gaebel, a Republican, and its current representative, Frank Armstrong, a Democrat, looking on from the back of the room. Lawmakers are expected to once again take up the question of the assistant CEO at the meeting scheduled for January 14 at the town hall in Jeffersonville.