The Lysander town clerk raised concerns about the propriety of a closed-door meeting of the town board last week.
Town Clerk Lisa Dell raised questions about a meeting she said took place prior to the July 13 regular town board meeting. During the public comment period, Dell said the town board met behind closed doors without calling an executive session or announcing it to the public.
“I think all of you know that you have to call an executive session out of an open meeting, and if I’m wrong, please tell me,” Dell said.
“I will right now. We had a conference call with our attorney today. That can be done behind a closed door, and we did not have an illegal meeting,” Supervisor John Salisbury said.
Town attorney Tony Rivizzigno said the half-hour conference call for legal counsel is not covered by New York state’s Open Meetings Law (OML).
“It was two attorneys at the same time,” Councilor Andy Reeves said of the conference call. “We doubled our pleasure.”
Councilor Roman Diamond, who was absent from the July 13 meeting, wrote in a letter to the editor of the Messenger (see page 4) that he was never informed of the conference call and was not invited to participate, even remotely.
Section 108 of OML states that public bodies are exempt from notifying the public or allowing the public to attend a meeting that concerns “judicial or quasi-judicial proceedings, except proceedings of the public service commission and zoning boards of appeals,” “deliberations of political committees, conferences and caucuses” or “any matter made confidential by federal or state law.”
Bob Freeman, executive director of the state’s Committee on Open Government, told the Messenger that the third exemption includes seeking legal counsel and that there is case law to support it.
A guide to OML exemptions on the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press’ website cites a handful of court opinions on the subject, including a 1993 decision from the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Second Department, that “confidential communications between board and counsel were exempt from OML.”
This is not the first time Dell and Diamond have accused members of the Lysander Town Board of holding meetings that violate OML. Last year, Dell alleged that the board met illegally April 24, 2014. Also in 2014, Diamond accused Salisbury, Reeves and Deputy Supervisor Melinda Shimer of meeting illegally, but Salisbury said their meeting fell under OML’s “deliberations of political committees, conferences and caucuses” exemption because of the three’s “Lysander First” coalition.
As the July 13 meeting ended, Reeves said, “That’s another false illegal meeting — I think that’s six so far.”
Salisbury told Dell that Deputy Town Clerk Elaine McMahon should “find out the facts” before Dell came to a conclusion about the board’s activities.
“It wasn’t Elaine, John. I had left and I saw closed doors,” Dell said.
Also on the agenda
-Art, photo displays: Salisbury reminded the audience that there is a display of elementary schoolers’ artwork in the town hall rotunda. “They’ve done an outstanding job in their art presentation,” he said.
In addition to the youngsters’ artwork, there is a display of historical maps of the town of Lysander from the 1800s, complete with a list of families who owned property in the area. Also, Key Bank has donated historical photographs of the Baldwinsville area, including the Seneca hotels that were located on the northwest corner of the village’s Four Corners.
-Highway payday: Because of this past winter’s unusually severe weather, Onondaga County has tacked on a “severity factor” bonus to the amount the town of Lysander receives for plowing county roads. Normally, Lysander receives $6,867 per mile to plow designated county roads. This year, the county awarded a 34 percent severity factor increase, bringing the rate up to $9,202. As a result, $75,530 will be added to the highway fund.
-Toomey walkthrough: Shimer reported that she and Code Enforcement Officer Tim Wolsey recently completed their final walkthrough of the Toomey Residential Children’s Community Residence on Doyle Road. “After nine months they are now going to receive their certificate of occupancy,” Shimer said.
An opening date has not yet been announced.
