APRIL 8, 2015 LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, APRIL 8, 2015, 3:31 PM
BY TOM NOBILE
STAFF WRITER |
MAHWAH SUBURBAN NEWS
Mahwah – Township Clerk Katherine Coviello said she expects to announce her findings bynoon Thursday, April 9, as to the validity of a notice of intention to recall Mayor William Laforet.
A Notice of Intention to Circulate a Recall Petition, signed by five township residents, was delivered to the mayor’s office early March 30. If approved by the Coviello, the petition would require signatures from 25 percent of Mahwah’s registered voters – roughly 4,000 residents – to place a recall question on the Nov. 3 ballot.
Annette Freund, one of the petition’s sponsors, said a series of poor decisions by Laforet led to the recall initiative, but it was “escalated” by the mayor’s handling of the recent Department of Public Works controversy.
Laforet had moved to terminate DPW Director and political foe Ed Sinclair after according to Laforet, pornography was discovered on at least one public works’ computer. Supporters of Sinclair objected, calling the move a political ploy, and on March 26 the council voted to overturn the mayor’s action. Councilwoman Lisa DiGiulio, enraged by the mayor’s tactics, called him “a piece of (expletive)” during the meeting and led 150 residents in a “recall” chant. A 4-3 vote of “no confidence” in Laforet’s leadership followed.
The notice cited a number of reasons for the recall, including:
n Goss incompetent management of personnel matters with reckless disregard for township policies.
n Failure to abide by municipal statutes governing the protection of the township’s real property assets.
n Breach of fiduciary responsibilities in allowing significant over-expenditures of the police overtime budget without advising the Township Council.
n Accepting political contributions from applicants before the Planning Board on which he sits, and voting favorably on their applications.
n And misuse of the township police communications channel for self-promotion.
Gary Montroy, a former construction official who also sponsored the petition, said the DPW situation was the “straw that broke camel’s back.”
“After what happened with Mr. Sinclair, I was appalled by that whole thing,” he said.
Laforet has stood by his decision to terminate Sinclair, saying the petition is “politically motivated and it disregards the facts.”
“Inappropriate material was being viewed on town computers,” he said.
Members of the governing body declined to comment on the petition, but indicated that the growing between the mayor and governing body began early in his tenure.
Council President John Roth said the tension is often due to a “lack of communication between him and the council.”
“The communications that we get are often suspect [and] misleading,” Roth said.
The installation of an ice rink on township property without the council’s knowledge and using the Nixle system for political purposes are among the most recent disputes.
While Freund remains confident the petition can achieve the 4,163-signature threshold, supporters face an uphill battle.
https://www.northjersey.com/news/mayor-targeted-by-residents-alleging-poor-decision-making-1.1304798
