Another sudden council vacancy in Honesdale

Linda Drollinger
Posted 8/21/12

HONESDALE, PA — President James Brennan read aloud at the May 11 meeting of the Honesdale borough council a brief April 15 email from Harry DeVrieze announcing his resignation from the council, …

This item is available in full to subscribers.

Please log in to continue

Log in

Another sudden council vacancy in Honesdale

Posted

HONESDALE, PA — President James Brennan read aloud at the May 11 meeting of the Honesdale borough council a brief April 15 email from Harry DeVrieze announcing his resignation from the council, effective April 13, 2015. Although no reason was given for the sudden resignation, the council voted unanimously to accept it, Brennan and Bill Canfield adding “with regret” as their votes were cast.

DeVrieze was appointed to the council on May 12, 2014 to fill the unexpired term of Tiffany Kominski, who resigned unexpectedly on April 14, 2014, only four months after being elected. In his resignation email, DeVrieze thanked the council and others with whom he had worked during his tenure, saying that borough employees “were the grease that makes the borough run.”

DeVrieze served as chair of the building and zoning committee while on the council, a position the council reassigned to Dan Barnes. Citing Barnes’ years of relevant experience in construction and building supply, Brennan said that he was clearly best qualified to succeed DeVrieze on that committee.

The council also approved unanimously a motion to publish a press release seeking candidates for the vacancy it hopes to fill at its next monthly meeting on June 8. The successful candidate will serve the remainder of DeVreize’s term, from the date of appointment until the first Monday of 2016.

The council moved on to other matters of business, thanking Department of Public Works (DPW) Director Rich Doney and his crew for their willingness and capability to tackle borough refurbishment projects well outside the department’s traditional street-maintenance functions. Praising Doney and crew for their versatile skills, several council members said that by employing DPW manpower to install new windows on the ground floor of borough hall, the borough had realized a considerable savings that would otherwise have gone to one or more private contractors. Anita Pisano then requested that DPW install an awning over the rear entrance to borough hall as part of the planned rear lobby renovation, and Doney replied that it was doable.

In some good fortune out of the blue, Scott Smith said that the borough has received an offer of $50 apiece for 15 obsolete fire hydrants listed for sale on the borough’s website for more than five years. Smith provided a short history of the hydrants, saying that they had been replaced as part of an overhaul by the borough’s water company and could no longer function as working hydrants. Urging the council to accept the offer quickly, Smith rejected a plea from Gail Tucker, executive director of Greater Honesdale Partnership, to make the Wayne County Arts Alliance aware of the sale. Tucker thought that the hydrants might be used as historical art installations throughout the borough, but Smith noted that, weighing between 100 and 120 pounds each, the hydrants would make unwieldy art. The council decided to accept the offer on the table and to permit the arts alliance first crack at the next set of obsolete hydrants, to be available as part of another overhaul being conducted in the near future.

Comments

No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here