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Thursday, January 10, 2019 - Issue 10 Monticello Treasurer & Code Enforcement Officer Get Physical Mayor Sommers Defends Lasher, Tells Singer He Can Leave Workplace Violence Expert: ‘Inevitable It Will Escalate’ Story and photos by Rich Klein
Left to right: Ron Singer, Gary Sommers and Gary Lasher
Monticello, January 10, 2019 - There’s an old saying “you can’t fight city hall.” In Monticello, though, fighting inside Village Hall, has become normal. Both former Mayor Doug Solomon (who replaced Gordon Jenkins in the aftermath of a corruption scandal) and current Mayor Gary Sommers have certainly had their share of issues regarding civility in the workplace. Clashes between employees have contributed to the dysfunction for years and there has not been a strong enough mayor or board of trustees to stop it. In some cases, a 1
few of the elected officials have contributed to the problem. One example in recent years is trustee Carmen Rue, who has tried to directly manage village hall employees, something that the New York State Conference of Mayors and Municipal Officials says in its handbook is prohibited. The latest incident was a December 26, 2018 physical confrontation between Village Treasurer Gary Lasher, hired by Sommers last June, and Code Enforcement Officer Ron Singer, a former New York City building inspector who has been on the job since 2017. Lasher is also the Village Administrator when Sommers is not present in an arrangement passed by the Board last summer. Sommers said he is out of town and not in Village Hall two days each week.
Sommers, who served as Mayor in the early 2000s, won the race for one of the two trustee seats in March 2018 and was appointed Mayor by the Board in May 2018. He was nominated by trustee Carmen Rue. On June 4, 2018, he appointed Lasher to the position of Village Treasurer to replace Melissa DeMarmels, who resigned April 27 and who coincidentally replaced Lasher as the Comptroller for Town of Thompson. In an emergency meeting held by the Town of Thompson board in May 2018, Lasher agreed to be terminated and DeMarmels was hired. In an interview on Monday, Singer said that Lasher came to his office on December 26 steaming about a permit issue involving the new water line into the new Sullivan County Jail in Monticello. Singer told The Sullivan Times that Lasher, after a heated verbal exchange, slammed “10 to 15 pounds of paper” onto his hand, resulting in a laceration. Sommers said his understanding of the incident was that Singer pushed that same pile of papers into the chest of Lasher but it remains unclear who initiated the situation. Singer ultimately filed complaints --alleging that he was assaulted-- with the Monticello Police Department and the County Sheriff’s Office. Sommers said that Monticello Police Chief Mir took the complaint to District Attorney Jim Farrell, who, according to Sommers, said he could not prosecute if there was no visible injury from the incident. The December incident led to an emergency meeting in early January with Singer, Sommers, Mir and Village Attorney Michael Davidoff. At that meeting, held on January 4, 2019, Sommers told Singer that Lasher was staying on the job and, if he didn’t like that decision, then he could “hand in his keys and walk out the door.” Singer said he was not resigning. “They are conspiring to get rid of me,” Singer said on Monday. “I think they want to make my life miserable. “ Lasher did not return requests by phone and email for an interview. Sommers, who functions as a Mayor and part-time Village Manager, harshly criticized Singer’s work. In an interview Tuesday morning, Sommers accused Singer of issuing permits that should not have been issued, not closing buildings that should have been closed, didn’t evacuate buildings that should have been evacuated, and issued certificates without proper inspections. Singer disputed those allegations, saying that it’s more likely that Sommers and Lasher, who he says are good friends, don’t like the fact that he is diligent in his job and often goes above and beyond his responsibilities to insure residents’ safety.
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One example cited by Singer was his recent decision not to issue a rental permit to the owner of a building on High Street because of a persistent bedbug problem. Sommers and Lasher said that Singer should have issued the permit to landlord Ago Kolenovic, anyway, and then issue a summons. But Singer said that the Village Code prohibits that. Sommers said in an interview that that New York State law, which adopts the International Property Maintenance Code, supercedes the Village Code on these kind of issues. Sommers says that he often consults with BJ Gettel, the Town of Bethel’s Code Enforcement Officer who is a leading authority in New York State on enforcement issues. She pointed The SullivanTimes to the section of the international code that Sommers was referring to (below). As Sommers sees it, and as the code states, the owner is only responsible for pest elimination prior to renting or leasing the structure.
But Singer said that Sommers also criticized him for authorizing a tenant protection plan in the aftermath of horrific conditions last winter at Sleepy Hollow apartments. According to Singer, Sleepy Hollow had a number of complaints from many tenants. He said tenants were living for some 10 days with no electricity, no plumbing, no heat and no hot water and that the landlord even gave tenants a five-gallon drum to use in lieu of toilets. Singer said that as soon as he learned about it, he co-opted a tenant protection plan from New York City and immediately told the tenants they could stay in hotels. Village Manager David Sager approved that plan, according to Singer. Yet, Sommers on Tuesday criticized Singer because the Village never authorized payments to cover the cost of putting up freezing tenants in a motel. “He does not create policy,” Sommers said. “He would have had to come to the board (for approval of a resolution creating such a tenant protection plan) and that (plight of tenants at Sleepy Hollow) should have been handled by the American Red Cross.” Sommers said the motel billed the Village for the tenants but that it eventually got resolved and was paid for by the landlord.
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Sommers had little criticism of Lasher about his work or the December 26 incident, except to say that he needs to put things in writing when he has a problem so that he and the Board can take a potential action. He also indicated that he has a big tolerance for tensions in Village Hall. “That happens in any office situation when you have people working together,” Sommers said of the confrontation between Singer and Lasher. “There are times when you get frustrated with another person and you yell at them. It depends on your personality.” But Felix Nater, president of Nater Associates and one of the nation’s most recognized workplace violence experts, warned Tuesday that there is a problem with that thinking. “It will inevitably escalate,” Nater said, adding that Village Hall “must have zero tolerance for provocative behavior with consequences for failure to resolve that behavior.”
Lang, Kornfeld Setting “Woodstock” Stage For Watkins Glen World Awaits Lineup For Bethel Woods With Live Nation on Same Historic Weekend The Who, Joan Baez Say No to Return for 50th WATKINS GLEN - As we reported exclusively on our Facebook page (December 23), Michael Lang’s plan to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Woodstock this summer will happen at Watkins Glen International (WGI), the speedway that hosted a record crowd of 600,00 Summerfest in July 1973.
Left to right: Michael Lang, Joel Rosenman, Santana percussionist Michael Carabello and Wade Lawrence, Museum at Bethel Woods. The photo was taken in 2017 when the National Register of Historic Places marker was placed at Bethel Woods. A talk about Woodstock memories followed. At right: Artie Kornfeld at Bethel Woods in 2014 for the showing of the documentary film Woodstock on the site.
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Although publicly announced on Wednesday, Lang and Michael Printup, the president of Watkins Glen International, were in talks for about two years, according to Chris Banker, the director of public relations for the speedway who spoke to reporters on Wednesday. Woodstock Ventures’ other surviving members are Artie Kornfeld and Joel Rosenman, who does not appear to be involved in the Watkins Glen gig. Rosenman could not be reached at presstime to confirm this. Lang initially released a short statement on his Woodstock Music and Art Fair Facebook page (coincidentally with nearly half a million likes) that said Bethel Woods “doesn’t have the capacity to host our official Woodstock 50 Celebration.” He followed up with a press release on Wednesday morning that went into more detail about Watkins Glen plans and has said in interviews that he expects 50,000 to 100,00 fans to attend. Darlene Fedun, CEO of Bethel Woods did not return our email request asking about the nature of any negotiations that might have taken place between Bethel Woods and Lang. But, earlier, Fedun issued a statement confirming that the Yasgur Farm original site would not be collaborating with Lang/Woodstock Ventures. Bethel Woods, which hosted Mysteryland a few years ago, reportedly had a permit from the Town of Bethel for that event for some 30,000 concertgoers. It’s unclear at this time if Bethel Woods is planning to limit the event to the current concert space or will utilize the vast amount of acreage that spans the former Yasgur property, including where the Harvest Festival is now held. Lang produced Woodstock ‘94 in Saugerties with his original Woodstock ‘69 co-producers --but a Woodstock 1999 concert organized by the same group (minus Artie Kornfeld) in Rome NY was plagued by intense heat, exorbitant vendor prices for food and water, out of control bonfires and some rioting. An online poll posted on The SullivanTimes Facebook page on Wednesday asked which site fans would choose: Bethel Woods or Watkins Glen. As presstime, 127 people chose Bethel while just eight said they would go to Watkins Glen in late August. We’ll put up another poll once both venues post their full entertainment lineups. - Rich Klein
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Monticello School Board Assessing Sale of Properties Duggan Reopening Still in Plans For May - Board Meets January 17
There will be a regular meeting of the Monticello Central School District Board of Education on Thursday, Jan. 17, 2019 at 6:30 p.m. in the Robert J. Kaiser Middle School Cafeteria, which will be led off with a proposed executive session. The open meeting will occur after the completion of the executive session, according to the Board. It’s expected that more details will emerge at the meeting regarding the planned May 2019 referendum, which is expected to include the reopening of the Cornelius Duggan Elementary School in White Lake.That school has been shuttered since 2010 and would not re-open until at least 2020 if voters pass the referendum.
As for other repairs being made or planned, the district’s January 2019 “Classroom 2020” video says that roofs in all the elementary schools will be replaced during the summer of 2019. During 2020-2021, the plan is to replace the district’s bus garage and have all high school renovations completed. The video also stated that by the summer of 2022, repairs to all elementary schools will be completed. The Monticello Board of Education last month released assessments of certain school properties that it may sell to help fund repairs in existing schools. The buildings that have been assessed included Emma Chase Elementary (Wurtsboro) and the shuttered Cornelius Duggan Elementary School that the Board wants to re-open if voters approve a planned referendum vote in May. Here’s a link to the November 2018 contract between the district and its architectural firm that’s planning the existing and future repairs/renovations throughout the district.
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EDITORIAL Monticello Needs to Catch Some External County Optimism Inside Village Hall Our lead story today about problems inside Village of Monticello government is a sad one, mainly because there is so much good news outside the building. With the casino, new hotel/water park nearby and the upcoming 50th anniversary of Woodstock seven miles away and some business/aesthetic improvements on Broadway, one would think that public officials and employees in Village Hall would be proud to be at the center of a great economic revival. But unfortunately, it seems many village employees are living and working in a bubble that’s more negative than positive. And that continues to hurt residents and businesses. If the buck stops at the top, then Mayor Gary Sommers, who is also the part time Village Manager, needs to right this wobbly ship. Doug Solomon had a full time Village Manager. But Sommers took over that role after the departure of David Sager and made his treasurer, Gary Lasher, village administrator in Sommers’ absence. But that experiment does not seem to be succeeding when it comes to the workplace culture. Lasher was forced out as comptroller in the Town of Thompson last year, in part because the New York State Comptroller’s Office said he was not doing HIS job well. Now, in Monticello, he has clashed regularly with Code Enforcement Officer Ron Singer. Even if Lasher and Sommers are right about Singer not following certain protocols, Sommers should not excuse or accept verbal abuse and yelling by any employee to another. It’s time for the Village of Monticello elected officials and employees to get with the program that is sweeping Sullivan County. It’s a program of renewed optimism, civility, cooperation and planning for a great future for all residents and businesses.
The Sullivan Times Editor & Publisher: Rich Klein PO Box 502 Jeffersonville NY 12748 sullivancatskillstimes@gmail.com Follow Us On Facebook and Instagram
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Town of Callicoon Supervisor Bose Says Revenue Sharing An Important Goal Alvarez To Offer Solution in January 24 State of County Address Town of Callicoon Supervisor Tom Bose, like other town supervisors in the County, wants to see a breakthrough of the logjam between the County Legislature and towns over sharing sales tax revenue that’s been a source of friction for a few years now. “The (Legislature’s) resistance is, why should they give any revenue to the town when they (think they) can spend it as well as the towns can,“ Bose said. “But we (supervisors) disagree with that. Our money is better spent more locally. We are only asking for a small percentage over a threshold of the $40.5 million. They would keep the first $40.5 million and anything over that, we would share 40 percent of excess money over $40.5 million.” Bose said that there was “a pretty good proposal hammered out but then we had elections. The Legislature changed hands and they’ve been pushing back since. “ Bose added that “our infrastructure and maintenance of roads and bridges is a big deal” and that most of the town’s budget goes for the highway department. At presstime, Alvarez issued this statement to The SullivanTimes: “I’ve been talking with supervisors, including Tom Bose, about their request for a cut of increased sales tax income, something they’ve been asking for since before the current Legislature was seated. While our predecessors were close to agreeing on a sharing formula with the towns, my colleagues and I felt that we should wait to see not only what new revenues came our way but also what new expenses cropped up. As anyone with a budget knows well, expenses tend to keep pace with revenues, if not outpace them. However, the pleas of supervisors to help them balance their budgets and more cost-efficiently serve their taxpayers – OUR taxpayers – has not gone unheard. The County already shares resources, equipment and personnel with our towns whenever and wherever we can, and vice-versa. We have to rely on each other – we’re too small a place not to. “So while we legislators have not moved forward on sharing sales tax revenues, I believe we’ve found another new revenue stream into which towns can tap. We’re working out the details, and I plan to announce this exciting new initiative at my State of the County Address, tentatively scheduled for January 24. It’s about ‘taking care of our own’: in this case, our towns and our taxpayers. Stay tuned!”
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Foster Supply Hospitality Acquires Piccolo Paese in Liberty LIBERTY - Sims Foster and his wife, Kirsten (photo at left), owners of Foster Supply Hospitality, capped off a great 2018 with the purchase of Northern Italian restaurant Piccolo Paese, where former owner Baco Vulaj will stay on as chef.
The Fosters own The Arnold House, The North Branch Inn, Nine River Road, The Cabin at Hessinger-Lare and The DeBruce -- which was recently named one of the best new restaurants in America by Esquire. In an exclusive interview earlier this week, Kirsten Foster said that the Liberty restaurant had been placed on the auction block and “we didn’t want to see Baco lose everything. We spoke with him and quickly found a great way for us to work together on this. It’s a historic place and classic Sullivan County establishment. We want to preserve that while updating it to make sure we reach a new generation as well. “ She added that Foster Supply Hospitality “has bench strength in the culinary department given many restaurants that we operate already - so adding this made sense for our portfolio and allows us to continue to offer growth opportunities to our team.” A gut renovation of the property was underway this week as part of the updating process. A news release issued today said that the eatery will open in April. “It is a privilege to be able to partner with Chef Baco and reintroduce this Sullivan County institution to those who might have been coming to the restaurant for years, and welcome new visitors who are just discovering the county,” Foster said in the news release. The same news release announced that Western Sullivan Properties, a real estate company affiliated with Foster Supply Hospitality, will assume operations of the Sullivan County Golf and Country Club from Town of Liberty Supervisor Brian Rourke. The project will be led by Managing Partner Christopher Monello and partners Damon Sabatini and Sims Foster. Western Sullivan Properties will continue golf course operations in Liberty without disruption for the 2019 season “while exploring larger development opportunities for the property and restaurant facilities in the near future.” Rouke, quoted in the news release, said: “As someone that cares very much about the future of the Town of Liberty, I cannot think of a better group to be exploring the development potential of the Sullivan County Golf and Country Club. Their vision and energy is exactly what Liberty needs to help attract visitors and to provide new opportunities for Liberty residents.” 9
Happy New Year!
Balloons drop on partygoers at the Western Supper Club and Inn (Callicoon) at midnight - January 1, 2019 (photon by Rich Klein)
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