Mayor elect Eddie Sundquist discusses his transition strategy during a press conference on Friday, Nov. 22.

[UPDATE (DEC 31, 2019 – 1:40 p.m.)] – The Jamestown City Council reorganization meeting is Wednesday, Jan. 1 at noon at Jamestown Community College’s Scharmann Theater. New Jamestown Mayor Eddie Sundquist will be sworn into office, along with the new members of the Jamestown City Council.

JAMESTOWN – When Jamestown mayor-elect Eddie Sundquist is sworn into office on Jan. 1, his first official duty as mayor will be to fill several administrative positions as well as make appointments (or reappointments) to more than three dozen seats on various city boards and commissions (including three citizen representative seats and one city council representative seat on the Jamestown Board of Public Utilities).

As written in the city charter, the mayor is tasked with making appointments to a variety of director positions, along with various boards, commissions and city officers. However, the city council is given the power of consent, meaning any appointment by the mayor must be approved by at least a simple majority of the Jamestown City Council.

“Obviously there is a very limited amount of time for us to find everyone – again 38 spots along with department positions. So if we are able to and after we receive approval from the council – the council will receive the list about a week or two before the (appointment) vote – if we have approval to release it we will do so,” Sundquist said during his transition strategy announcement on Friday.

It should be noted that there is no requirement in the city charter that the mayor first provide a list his prospective appointees to the city council before making it public, let alone that the council must give the mayor persmission to provide the list prior to its review.

ADMINISTRATIVE POSITIONS UP FOR APPOINTMENT ON JAN. 1

Among the administrative appointments Sundquist must make are for the following positions:

• Director of Administrative Services/City Clerk (currently held by acting clerk Jim Olson through Dec. 31, 2019)
• City Comptroller (currently held by Joe Bellitto through Dec. 31, 2019)
• Director of Development (vacated Nov. 12 by Vince DeJoy)
• Director of Public Works (currently held by Jeff Lehman through Dec. 31, 2019)
• Corporation Counsel/HR Director (currently held by Peter Larson through Dec. 31, 2019)

Both current city clerk Jim Olson and current city comptroller Joe Bellitto plan to retire in the near future, though in Bellitto’s case he has stated he would be willing to stay on in 2020 to help transition a new comptroller.

In the case of the director of development, currently city principal planner Crystal Surdyk is coordinating the department through the remainder of this year.

Public works director Jeff Lehman is the longest-serving department head, having been in his position since 1994 and serving under two different mayors (Republican Richard Kimball and current mayor and Democrat Sam Teresi). Lehman has not indicated any plans to step down from his position and it will be up to Sundquist to determine if he should be reappointed for another four years or go with someone else.

Larson was appointed city attorney this past March to fill out the remainder of the term of former corporation counsel Marylin Fiore-Lehman, who announced her departure to take a position with the Chautauqua County District Attorney’s Office. He has also continued to work for the private practice of Bly, Sheffield, Bargar & Pillittieri since his appointment.

The position of Jamestown Public Safety Director / Police Chief is also an appointed position, which is currently held by chief Harry Snellings. However, the term of that position will not end until Dec. 31, 2021.

THREE BPU SEATS HIGHLIGHT BOARD AND COMMISSION APPOINTMENTS

According to information provided to WRFA by the city clerk’s office, there are 38 different city board and commission seats up for appointment or reappointment on Jan. 1.  Among them are four seats on the Jamestown BPU.

For the BPU, both citizen board members Martha Zenns and Terrance Horner are in the final year of their four-year term. In addition, citizen board member Ralph Wallace is in the final year of his two-year term on the board. Sundquist will also have to appoint a city council representative to the BPU. Currently Maria Jones is serving as the city council’s BPU member, but she lost reelection on Nov. 5 and as a result, another member of the new city council will have to be appointed to her seat. Rounding out the BPU citizen members are currently BPU chair Gregory Rabb  along with Jim Olson (both terms end on Dec. 31, 2021).  The remaining three BPU members will be Eddie Sundquist, who serves as board president by way of his position as mayor, along with the public works director (currently Jeff Lehman) and the president of the city council (currently Marie Carrubba).

(Note: Because Carrubba is a Democrat and the Republican party will take control of the council on Jan. 1, it’s expected a new city council president will be named and, as a result, that person will then assume that seat on the BPU. Speculation is that councilman Tony Dolce will be voted Council president on Jan. 1.)

– OTHER BOARDS/COMMISSIONS –

There are ten other board and commission seats and officer positions that will also need appointment are reappointment come Jan. 1. They include:

Jamestown Local Development Corporation  (4 year term)

• Two seats currently held by George Spitale and Mark Morton plus one city council representative seat, currently held by Kim Ecklund (2 year term)

Jamestown Urban Renewal Agency (4 year term)

• One seat currently held by Martha Zenns

Zonning Board of Appeals (3 year term)

• Three seats currently held by Ellen DiTonto (current chair), Sally Martinez, and Judith Sandson.

Planning Commission (5 year term)

• One seat currently held by Paul Whitford.

Property, Rehabilitation and Conservation Board of Appeals (3 year terms)

• Seven seats currently held by Nanzy Griswold, Mary Maxwell, Sharon McKotch, Gary Sorenson,  and three vacancies.

Parks, Recreation and Conseration Commission (5 year term)

• Two seats currently held by Russell E. Diethrick, Jr. and John Bauer

Riverfront Management Council (3 or 5 year terms)

• One Vacancy; Two designated Parks, Rec. and Con. Commission Member (Currently Russell Diethrick Jr. and John Bauer); One Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy Representative; One Roger Tory Peterson Institute Representative; One Jamestown Audubon Society representatives; One Jamestown High School represenative; and three JHS Student representatives (all 5 year terms).

Veterans Memorial Commission (3 year terms)

• Three seats currently held by Charles Telford (chair), Daniel Kell, and Theresa Baginski.

Board of Electrical Examiners (2 year term)

• Two seats currently held by James McTavish and Steve Nowel.

Constable (4 year term)

• Three positions  up for reappointment: Marie Hill (holdover), Camille Krawczyk (holdover), and Michael Berg.

Marriage officer (4 year term)

• Three officers up for reappoinment: Gregory Rabb, Paul Whitford, and Lillian Ney.

“These can be voted on collectively on January 1 or tabled until the next regularly scheduled meeting, probably January 27,” explained city clerk Jim Olson when providing the list to WRFA.

On Monday night the City Council acted on more than two dozen mayoral appointments to various boards and agencies, including the BPU. Jamestown Mayor Sam Teresi said that keeping with tradition, he wanted to appoint the new council president to the BPU.

“I have two council members that I need to appoint [every two years] in accordance with the city charter… and I’ve had a long-standing tradition of appointing the council president to the board,” Teresi said. “I just feel it is important to have the council president being one of the two council members to serve on the board because of all the coordination that happens between the city council and the BPU.”

Carrabba will take over the seat occupied by former city council president Greg Rabb, who did not win reelection last November. However, Rabb will remain active on the BPU and was appointed by Teresi to serve a four-year term.

Teresi said it was important for him to keep Rabb in the fold, given his years of experience.

“Greg was a good fit. Obviously he knows the lay of the land. We are dealing with a variety of issues right now that are in mid-stream and I think that continuity as well as the cohesion on that board is important,” Teresi said. “I thought that keeping that board in tact was important.”

Teresi said among the items the BPU is currently focused on is the annexation effort of the Dow St. Substation property from the village of Falconer/Town of Ellicott, an effort to purchase a natural gas pipeline that feeds into the BPU Generating Station, the proposed sale of the city Wastewater Treatment Plant to the Jamestown Local Development Corporation (JLDC), and an effort to request the state Public Service Commission to allow for the increase of electric rates in the next two or three years.

Rabb will take over the seat that was help previously by BPU member Martha Zenns (a term of four years). Zenns meanwhile was reappointed to a two-year term to fill the seat previously occupied by Tyler Case, who was not reappointed to a new term. Instead, Case was appointed to the JLDC board.

Also being reappointed to the BPU was councilwoman Maria Jones (D-Ward 4), along with community representatives Ralph Wallace and Chuck Cornell.

A highlight of the meeting will be the appointment of a new council president. The new president will replace former council president Greg Rabb, who did not win reelection last November.

With Democrats on the council holding a slight 5 to 4 majority, council members will likely select another Democrat to serve as the new president.  Among the Democrats who could be selected are councilwoman Marie Carrubba (ward 4), councilwoman Maria Jones (ward 5), councilwoman Vicki James (ward 3), councilman Tom Nelson (ward 6), or councilwoman Vanessa Weinert (at large) – who is the newest member of the group following her election win in the November.

Meanwhile, the longest serving council members are in the group of four Republicans and could also be in the mix for appointment to lead the council. They are councilman Tony Dolce (ward 2) – who also chairs the city’s finance committee, along with councilwoman Kim Ecklund (at large).  The other two republicans to round out the list of council members are Brent Sheldon (ward 1) and Andrew Liuzzo (at large) – who also won election in November and is beginning his first term on the council.

Council to Review and Act on Mayoral Appointments

In addition to appointing a new president, the council will also review and act on a series of appointments to several city agency boards and positions brought forward by Jamestown Mayor Sam Teresi. Among those appointments are membership to the Jamestown Board of Public Utilities – where five out of the nine seats will be up for appointment.

Rabb was one of the two city council members appointed to the BPU, but because he lost his bid for reelection last year, his seat will be vacated and will have to filled by another council member.

The four other BPU members whose term expires at the end of 2017 and would have to be reappointed or replaced Monday night are:

• BPU Chairman Chuck Cornell (appointed to BPU to fill a vacated seat in June 2014);
• City Councilwoman Maria Jones;
• Ralph Wallace (appointed to BPU in January 2016);
• and Martha Zenns (appointed to BPU in January 2014).

The city website has not posted any of the appointments that will be acted on during Monday’s meeting, so it’s not publicly known who any of Teresi’s nominations are for any of the agencies or positions that have seats up for appointment, including the BPU. However, the mayor has indicated to WRFA that it’s likely all four of those individuals currently on the BPU will be reappointed to new terms during the meeting.

Besides appointing a new council president and approving appointments from the mayor, the council members will also take their oath of office and will assign committee chairs for the new term.

Monday’s meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. in the city council chambers and is open to the public.

The BPU is comprised of four city officials along with five citizen members.  The city officials who serve on the BPU are the mayor (currently Sam Teresi), by virtue of office, who is also the President of the Board; the Director of Public Works (currently Jeff Lehman); two city council representatives (currently Greg Rabb and Maria Jones); and five community members, each appointed by the Mayor for terms that vary in length.

At least one new member will be added to the BPU at the start of the new year.  That’s because Rabb wasn’t reelected to a new term on the city council, meaning a new council member will have to be appointed by the mayor to replace him.

The four other BPU members whose term expires at the end of this year and would have to be reappointed or replaced on Jan. 1, 2018 are:

• BPU Chairman Chuck Cornell (appointed to BPU to fill a vacated seat in June 2014);
• City Councilwoman Maria Jones (who was reelected to the council on Election Day);
• Ralph Wallace (appointed to BPU in January 2016)
• Martha Zenns (appointed to BPU in January 2014)

The two other BPU members are community representatives Tyler Case and Terrance Horner, who were both appointed in January 2016 and whose terms both expire on Dec. 31, 2019.

The mayor is expected to announce his appointments and reappointments to the BPU during city council’s first meeting of the new year, which is tentatively set for Monday, Jan. 8, 2018.  The appointments would also have to be approved by a majority of the city council.

JAMESTOWN – The Jamestown City Council and Mayor Sam Teresi were on the defensive during Monday night’s council voting session, fending off criticism and attacks from several members of the public who spoke during the meeting’s public comment session.

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Falconer Mayor James Rensel speaking to the Jamestown City Council on Sept. 25, 2017

A total of five individuals spoke to the council, including Falconer Mayor James Rensel. Rensel has attended several past city council meetings to question and criticize officials about the ongoing annexation effort, in which the city is trying to annex a piece of property it owns, but lies within the village of Falconer/Town of Ellicott. The proposed annexation of the Jamestown Board of Public Utilities‘ Dow Street Substation is currently awaiting to be reviewed and decided on in State Appellate Court in Rochester.

• RELATED: James Rensel, Patrick McLaughlin and Todd Beckerink Discuss Annexation Opposition

During Monday’s meeting, Rensel focused his attention on a past proposal involving the the Falconer Volunteer Fire Department that he said was purported to create an annual $2 million savings for the city. That proposal was initially discussed more than 14 years ago, when the city was considering ways to cut public safety costs. It was brought up again earlier this year during the May 22 voting session when several individuals from Falconer and the Town of Ellicott addressed the council to voice their concern’s with the annexation.

Rensel even cited the former Falconer Fire board member Steve Vanstrom and former Jamestown deputy fire chief Lance Hedlund, saying they both confirm the plan existed and was reviewed and eventually turned down by city officials at the time. He then called out city councilman and finance committee chair Tony Dolce for not remembering the plan, which put Dolce on the defensive.

“Mr. Dolce’s comment was, as a recall, ‘I don’t remember that occurring. Well Mr. Dolce…”

Jamestown City Councilman Tony Dolce (second from left) addresses comments made by Falconer Mayor James Rensel

“Excuse me. That is not true,” Dolce said, interrupting Rensel’s comment. “And I want to tell you right now, I did my homework and I asked the fire department… they said it was a bunch of crap that was made up. It didn’t exist. It didn’t happen, so don’t stand up there and make those types of comments and put those words in my mouth.”

Near the end of the meeting, Dolce again took time out to address the plan Rensel was referring too.

“I don’t recall a meeting because I was not invited and so I reached out to a bunch of people [following the May 2017 meeting],” Dolce said. “I’d have to believe that if there was a $2 million savings, then we would have pursued that. I reached out to the former city council presidents and former members of council that were here at the time, and also current deputy fire chief Chet Harvey. No one could recall, although those meetings may have taken place, that there was anything of substance that came out of it.”

Jamestown Mayor Sam Teresi, who was also mayor at the time to purported plan was first discussed, also addressed the statements made by Rensel, although Rensel had left the meeting before hearing Teresi’s response.

“The only thing that I can recall of a proposal during my tenure – and before my tenure here because it comes up periodically – was a proposal that was brought forth by local 1772 of the Jamestown Professional Firefighters Association to allow them to staff up and ramp up a paid personnel, equipment, and facilities to run a 24-7 professional ambulance service within the operation of the fire department and go head-to-head with a private sector provider of those services – Alstar, that is a division of taxable WCA services division – with the wild claim that it would result in $2 million in net revenues and savings to the taxpayers of Jamestown…. It’s been shown that not only does the plan not produce a savings, it would actually create $1.5 to 2 million in net losses to the city,” Teresi said.

Jamestown resident and property owner Raven Mason.

Others who spoke to the city included Jamestown resident and Falconer property owners Raven Mason, who returned for the second month in a row to accuse the city council for not having a full discussion on the annexation, either amongst themselves or with the public.

During the council’s August meeting, Mason had posed 12 questions prior to the vote on the annexation and the council didn’t address any of them prior to voting in favor of the annexation later in the meeting. She also accused council president Greg Rabb for discouraging her from attending meetings and asking questions.

“I’m concerned about having received an informal letter from the city council president that clearly implied that if I had any public remarks, questions, or concerns, I should not address them publicly but instead call a private cell phone number instead of in the public venue…”

“I have to interrupt you,” Rabb then said. “That is not what I said. I said that if you had any concerns that you would like to discuss further I would be happy to meet with you anytime. But I did not tell you not to bring them up in public.”

Following the meeting, Rabb explained why he sent her a message and directed her to call him to discuss further, adding that it wasn’t intended to be interpreted as discouragement to attend future meetings.

“I just offered [my cell number], I thought generously, and I will continue to do this,” Rabb said, saying he gives it out to all constituents. “I say to people that if they have an issue that I can’t deal with right now, or if they give me an issue I’ll say let me go to city hall, give me a few days, and then call me. So I think that’s a public service.”

Mason also told WRFA after the meeting that she was appreciative of Rabb and Teresi’s response to her concerns, but also said that city officials need to work harder at encouraging and participating in public discourse with constituents before weighing in on controversial issues.

“I’m not trying to criticize from the point of right or wrong. I’m trying to establish truth here and establish transparency, and that people could feel comfortable enough to address it publicly. Maybe not so much as a debate, but getting clarity and transparency so that we know what is going on in our city,” Mason said.

Jamestown Mayor Sam Teresi, foreground, addresses a question that was posed by city resident Chris Gardner (background, standing) during the city council’s Sept. 25 voting session.

Others who spoke to the council included resident Chris Gardner, who challenged Rabb and other city officials for not fully answering his past questions that he posed during public comment regarding the annexation, including who was the city official who was the original sponsor of the annexation proposal.

Teresi responded by telling Gardner he didn’t know off the top of his head who the specific BPU board member was, only that it came as a recommendation from BPU General Manager David Leathers and that neither he nor Rabb – who both sit on the BPU board – sponsored it because city officials serving on the BPU don’t typically sponsor BPU resolutions.  He also urged Gardner to call the city clerk’s office or BPU secretary and ask them to review the minutes to identify the sponsor, or to simply look it up in the meeting minutes that have been posted online.

According to the BPU minutes for the January 2017 meeting, the resolution was sponsored by BPU member Ralph Wallace and approved unanimously 7-0, with both Rabb and fellow council member and BPU member Maria Jones absent.

The meeting will be the first for the three new members of the BPU, who were appointed by Mayor Sam Teresi and approved by the Jamestown City Council at the start of the year to replace three previous members. The three new members will be Tyler Case, Terrance Horner, and Ralph Wallace who are replacing John Zabrodsky, Wayne Rishell and Carl Pilliterri, after Teresi made the controversial decision not to reappoint the three long-time board members.  Zabrodsky, Rishell, and Pilliterri were each opposed to Teresi’s proposal in recent years to use BPU profits as a revenue stream to balance the city’s annual operating budget.

Because Zabrodsky had served as the chair of the BPU, there will also be a new board chairman for the first time in several years. An article in Monday’s Jamestown Post-Journal says the new chair will likely be Chuck Cornell or Martha Zenns, who are the two other community representatives who serve on the board and who were both appointed in 2014.

Monday’s board meeting begins at 4 p.m. at the BPU administrative offices and is open to the public.

During the city council’s New Year’s Day inaugural meeting on Friday, all nine members of the city council were sworn in to a new, two-year term in office, with just one new member joining the fold. Ward III Democrat Victoria James will be the only new member of the city council, replacing Republican Alphonso Pagan, whom she defeated in the November Election.

Also during Friday’s meeting the council approved several appointments by Teresi, including three new members for the BPU.

The newest BPU members will be Tyler Case, Terrance Horner, and Ralph Wallace. They are replacing: John Zabrodsky, appointed by Teresi in January 2000 and serving as BPU chairman from January 2002 to December 2015; Wayne Rishell, appointed by Teresi in January 2002; and Carl Pillittieri, appointed by Teresi April 2004.

The appointments came with no discussion or comment and were included in a laundry list of mayoral appointees for various agencies, commissions and boards involved with city government.

Jamestown Mayor Sam Teresi

“After consulting with members of the city council, colleagues on BPU and senior management staff, and advisors in the community, I decided to bring in [the three new members],” Teresi told reporters on Friday following the meeting. “They come from three different disciplines and backgrounds in the community and share mine and the council’s love for the city and commitment to building the entire city of Jamestown. Each showed a great deal of interest in joining the city government family on the BPU and I’m very happy to have them join us.”

The three new members will replace three individuals who bring a combined 42 years of board experience to the BPU. Perhaps even more noteworthy, the three outgoing members have been outspoken critics of the city government’s use of BPU profits – by way of dividend payments – to help balance its annual budget each year since 2014. That dividend sharing was first used by the city decades ago, but eventually went out of favor with city leaders. However, the dividend sharing was re-introduced by Teresi in an effort to close spending gaps in the city budget the past three years.

Despite the difference of opinion on how to best use BPU profits and the ensuing (and at times contentious) debates that took place, the mayor would not say that was the reason for not reappointing the three to another term.

“I’m not going to make this about what has happened in the past,” Teresi said. “New Year’s Day is a day about looking forward and that’s exactly what we’re doing here – celebrating and thanking the contributions of those board members that I had the opportunity, the pleasure and the honor of originally appointing. They’ve been good board members that have served the public utilities of this city well, and this city as a whole well. We thank them and honor them for their service through a difficult and diverse period of challenge and accomplishments for [the BPU].”

Chase is a city resident who currently serves as Human Resources Administrator at The Resource Center, where he’s been employed since 2003. This past November he also ran as a Democratic candidate for city council in Ward 1, losing to Republican incumbent Brent Sheldon. He’s also active in several community groups and organizations.

Horner is a retired Biomedical Technician who worked at WCA hospital in Jamestown for 30 years before retiring in 2013. He’s also a U.S. Army veteran and is involved in several community and regional organizations.

Wallace serves as the Operations Manager for Jamestown Metal Products, a position he’s held for the past 15 years. He’s also worked in management for several other manufacturers including CAE Ultrasonics, Jamestown Sterling Corporation, and Visu-Wall Storage Systems.

Teresi said he believes the diverse backgrounds of the three new members will serve the BPU well, ensuring representation from all aspects of the city and also bringing new energy and ideas into the fold.

“This is not about the three members that gave 16, 14, and 12 years of dedicated, good service to the community. It’s a matter of moving forth and refreshing and replenishing,” Teresi said. “It’s not the first time there have been new members brought onto the BPU and it certainly won’t be the last time.”

The six other members of the BPU, in order of seniority, are: Jeff Lehman, serving by way of position as DPW director since 1994; Teresi, serving by way of position as mayor since 2000; Greg Rabb, serving by way of position as city council president since 2008; Maria Jones, serving as city council liaison since 2013; Martha Zenns, appointed by Teresi in January 2014; and Charles “Chuck” Cornell, appointed by Teresi in July 2014.