Changes afoot with the North East Planning Board

NORTH EAST — All municipalities must hold organizational meetings each year to get ready for 12 months of running their towns with precision and order. But it was anything but business as usual for the town of North East on Monday, Jan. 3, as a number of anticipated appointments brought the Town Board to complete silence — a sure sign some were discontented with those slated to return their posts.

The outcome, for some, was a pass, for others matters were tabled, and for one, a decision was made against reappointment after a decade worth of service.

Klimowicz not

reappointed

The latter decision revolved around former Planning Board Chairman Henry Klimowicz, who held that post until Dec. 31, 2010; the annual appointment was not renewed during last week’s organizational meeting. Not only did Klimowicz lose his chairmanship, his seven-year term, which also expired at the end of the year, was not renewed.

Klimowicz, who has voluntarily served on the Planning Board for 10 years, said he “was and he wasn’t� surprised at the decision at the same time.

“I had some indication that  they were not happy with me because they hadn’t put me on the Zoning Review Committee [ZRC] that I had been a part of for rewriting the sign ordinance three weeks ago, so I felt they weren’t happy with my performance,â€� he said.

That issue resonated so deeply with Klimowicz that as much as the Planning Board news hit close to home, he said he would prefer his supporters press the Town Board to stand firm against changing the sign ordinance than take a stand for any change to his Planning Board status.

“It’s a political appointment and they have a right as elected officials to have whomever they wish. Certainly I don’t  feel like the position should be a permanent position for anybody,â€� Klimowicz said. “With all that said, I would have liked to have heard what their actual reasons were [for not reappointing me], but I can’t force them to do that as it’s not a part of the decision-making process.â€�

No prior discussion

Klimowicz added that town Supervisor Dave Sherman expressed surprise at the organizational meeting, clearly indicating the other three board members present (Dave McGhee, Tim Shaffer and Steve Merwin; Carl Stahovec was out sick) did not raise the matter for discussion previously.

“They were not doing their diligence by waiting until the last minute,� Klimowicz said.

Sherman agreed, addressing the fact head-on with his colleagues at the meeting.

“Is this something the board wishes to discuss in executive session?� he asked. “I find it interesting because there’s nothing I’ve heard about any dissatisfaction from the board.�

Councilman Merwin countered that the matter was addressed at the last meeting; McGhee moved to make the position open to the public. Sherman then suggested the issue be tabled and addressed in executive session.

It was, and then discussed once the members returned from behind closed doors. The matter was voted on, and with the exception of the town supervisor, the board voted not to reappoint Klimowicz to the Planning Board as chair nor as a member, and to open the position up to the public.

Pros and cons

Merwin explained the rationale for his decision during an interview later in the week.

“A lot of it comes from the public,� he said. “We had a lot of people who had issues and a lot of applicants who had problems with how things were dealt with on the Planning Board. There were arguments from the board with the applicants, and I felt it would be better to open the position up to somebody new.

“Henry’s the leader so a lot of [the complaints] were targeted toward him and the way he handled meetings,� Merwin added. “None of it’s personal, but when people come to us, that’s our responsibility to take care of problems the public is having. It’s their money, not ours, and we have a responsibility to do what the public wants us to do, within reason.�

Sherman expressed surprise at Merwin’s statement.

“I have heard no personal complaints against Henry,� he said. “Henry had been providing good service to the town and has done a good job as chairman. I don’t know whether some people have concerns with the board being a stickler on some issues, that could be held against almost anybody on the board. But the question is whether they felt they got unfair treatment or anything of that nature.

“I have not heard anything,� he added. “Certainly I have heard, more from the building inspector probably, that the Planning Board is kind of tough, and that kind of thing, but nobody has said it’s unfair or unreasonable relative to our local codes or what they require.�

Sherman added that if there was a problem it was the duty of  Town Board members to raise the topic and discuss it. The main question was, he said, was the job being done, and was it being done well.

“Generally speaking, when you look at the community, most people are really pleased about how things are developing,� Sherman said. “And it doesn’t get there by just talking about what’s handed in on the application. It takes adjusting and improving what’s submitted.�

Possibilities for

improvements

Nobody understands that better than Planning Board member Dale Culver, who was appointed as the new Planning Board chairman. He said he thought Klimowicz was good at his job and was sorry that he was not reappointed to the board.

“Henry has made very valuable contributions as a Planning Board member and as chair,â€� he said, acknowledging part of the concern the board had with Klimowicz related to communications, which needed to be worked on. “We serve the community but we also are directly responsible to the Town Board for our actions — they control our purse strings and we have an obligation to be more communicative with the  board. They need to know where we are  going. I do believe that’s been lacking.â€�

Culver said he would support the idea of the Planning Board meeting with the Town Board once or twice a year to review what’s been going on and where things stand.

“You can’t, in good conscience, make good progress if no one knows what’s going on,â€� Culver said. “I think the Town Board should see our vision for the community and would want to see what’s  being built for the next generation.â€�

Volunteer needed

As it now stands, there are six members on the Planning Board, with one vacancy. Anyone interested in serving the seven-year volunteer term should contact the Town Board at Town Hall at 518-789-3658.

Klimowicz, meanwhile, said he, too, will resubmit his name to the pool of interested applicants.

Merwin said he’s hopeful the process of finding a new Planning Board member will be relatively swift; he’s guessing the position will be filled by spring.