The difficulties that Poughkeepsie’s new Republican mayor, John C. Tkazyik, will face in getting his agenda through a Common Council where his party is outnumbered 7-1 were highlighted in a special session convened at City Hall on Monday, Jan. 7, to vote on two of his appointments.
Council members quickly and unanimously confirmed Hyde Park attorney Brian Morgan as corporation counsel to replace Stephen Wing, but failed to bring the nomination of Dutchess County deputy clerk and former council member Christopher Baiano as city chamberlain to a vote.
Amidst allegations that partisan politics were impeding the smooth operation of the city from residents who attended the session, council members affirmed that they were simply upholding Poughkeepsie’s charter and ensuring that well-paid positions are filled by those competent to discharge them – and pointed to their one confirmation to prove it.
“I cannot stress the vital importance of filling these positions tonight,” Tkazyik told the council in his opening remarks, going on to enumerate the city functions – issuance of marriage licenses, requests for public assembly permits – that had to be rejected last week because the city lacks a chamberlain, who acts as a city clerk. Yet council members answered with charter-based and pragmatic arguments..
“If the authors of the charter had wanted these appointments to be automatic, without due consultation with the council, they would have so ordered it,” said Council Chairman Brian Doyle (D-4th Ward). “The charter has provisions for appointing an acting chamberlain in the meantime.”
“These two positions total $150,000 a year – That’s a lot of money by anyone’s standard,” said Councilman Joe Rich (D-2nd Ward), emphasizing the need for scrutiny. “There is no crisis in the operation of city functions, except a political crisis that has been invented.”
At least one of the nominees agreed that due process was in order.
“I do appreciate what the Common Council is doing,” said Morgan in his brief remarks before the 8-0 vote which confirmed him. “The Common Council is not a rubber stamp and should not be a rubber stamp.”
Suitability a must
Council members stressed in their remarks that making sure that nominees suitable for the positions were confirmed was all that was at issue.
“I contacted five people, and all of them had nothing but good things to say about Mr. Morgan and his municipal experience,” said Councilwoman Mary Solomon (D-6th Ward) before casting her affirmative vote.
The charter stipulates that the corporation counsel must be a resident of Poughkeepsie, but gives the officeholder six months after assuming his duties too fulfill the requirement. Morgan indicated that he intends to make the move within that time.
What passed for high drama – though a very tedious one – then ensued as the council went into executive session for more than an hour to deliberate over the nomination of Baiano as city chamberlain. Rather than asking the public to leave, as is usual in executive session, the mayor and council members retired to an adjacent room.
Yet upon their return, no motion was made to bring the Baiano nomination to a vote.
Council members referred afterward to the need to clarify certain issues, and Tkazyik expressed his confidence that Baiano would eventually be confirmed. Baiano, emulating Morgan, affirmed that the council was acting properly in scrutinizing the nominees before it.