After 18 years at the administrative helm of the village, the board voted 3-1 on Monday to release him from his job, days before a new mayor and trustee are sworn in.

Sweeney said he’s an “at-will” employee, employed at the will of the board. He said his release gives the incoming board the chance to “build their team.”

“This gives them a clean slate,” Sweeney said. “This gives them the opportunity to put their team together.

“If they want to come talk to me to see if they want to bring me back … that’s fine,” he said.

Saranac Lake village Manager John Sweeney, right, and village Attorney Paul Van Cott share a hug at a village board meeting on Monday, possibly Sweeney’s last as manager. Before them is a bottle of whiskey Van Cott gave Sweeney as a parting gift. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)

The release request originated in outgoing Mayor Clyde Rabideau’s department, but Sweeney said it came from “all of us, collectively.” The request is dated March 16, the day after the election, but Sweeney said that’s neither here nor there, just a date put on the form.

Sweeney’s last day at the village is April 1, effective at 5 p.m.

–

Williams to find replacement

–

This release has put Mayor-elect Jimmy Williams in a tight spot with not a lot of time to find a replacement. He will be sworn in three days after Sweeney leaves the village government.

Williams said he’s working fast to find a suitable replacement and on Wednesday said he had been talking with some folks over the past week, but he hasn’t made any decisions of who to recommend yet. The village board will vote on his recommendation.

Williams said he’s looking for someone with organizational and leadership skills, and a background in some of the departments Sweeney supervises,

“I’d like somebody with an intimate understanding of Saranac Lake who’s committed to doing what’s best for the village,” Williams said.

In the meantime, Williams said the village has “great people” in its department head seats.

“I believe they can survive a week or two,” he said. “If I have to fill in for a while, I’ll fill in for a while.”

Williams said he had considered finding someone new for the manager position eventually, but he said he didn’t plan to do that yet.

Williams said Sweeney’s release came as a surprise to him. The two met on Wednesday. Two days later, he saw Sweeney’s release on the village board’s agenda on Facebook.

He said this is an example of what frustrates him with the village, and one of the reasons he chose to run.

“I’m a full believer in clear communication above all, so if John had things he wanted to discuss, I wish he would have brought them to me,” Williams said. “There was never an opportunity for me to discuss anything with anyone.”

He said the board put him in a position where if he wants to keep Sweeney, he’d have to “go backwards.”

“Why would we release somebody only to ask them back?” Williams asked.

Sweeney said he didn’t request the release, but he was uncertain how he would work with the new village leadership. He feels he has assets to bring to the village team, he said, but he didn’t feel part of the new team.

“I’m not sure I’m a fit,” Sweeney said. “You have team members who are asking, are we going to be on the team? And they’re not getting affirmative answers.”

Williams said he was waiting to build definite answers before answering those questions.

On his first day in office, Williams will have seven appointments to make — clerk, treasurer, deputy treasurer, deputy mayor, health officer, attorney and an alternate on the development board.

He said he’s only been mayor elect for a little over two weeks, but he’s spending 10 hours a day meeting with village staff and figuring out who those people will be — new appointments or existing employees.

“I think every position should be looked at carefully to make sure the village is getting the best performance it can out of each position,” Williams said. “I feel like I owe more to Saranac Lakers than just going in and winging it.”

He wants a “measure twice, cut once” approach.

“There’s need for improvement and change.” he said. “Sometimes that’s hard and uncomfortable (but) it’s needed.”

He wants to bring changes to the village, but he wants them to be calculated changes.

“I think it would be very short-sighted to have individuals selected for replacement without having intimate knowledge of their departments, how they’re feeling and their vision for Saranac Lake,” Williams said. “I didn’t have those things before the election.”

–

A “very reluctant” vote

–

At the meeting, Sweeney took some time to think before speaking, and didn’t say much then. He hadn’t talked to the whole board yet.

“First of all, I don’t want you to leave,” Trustee Melinda Little said. She won’t be on the board after Monday, but liked working with him.

When it came time to vote, Trustee Tom Catillaz was an emphatic “no.” When the vote was handed to Trustee Kelly Brunette, who won reelection, she looked around, dazed.

“I don’t know what to do,” she said.

“It’s your call,” Sweeney said.

Little asked if Sweeney wanted this.

“I want you guys to vote,” Sweeney said.

Kelly voted “yes.” Trustee Rich Shapiro voted “very reluctantly, yes.” Little voted “very reluctantly, yes.”

“Thank you,” Sweeney said.

“John, you’ve been a good friend,” Catillaz said.

Sweeney gave a shout-out to his wife, who was at her first — and perhaps his last — public board meeting.

“To be frank, she’s put up with more crap from me on this job than anybody ever should,” Sweeney said.

–

The man behind the curtain

–

Sweeney is one of the longest-standing members of the village staff and holds nearly two decades of institutional knowledge. He was village manager over the course of four mayors.

Several times during Monday’s meeting, trustees turned to Sweeney to explain the bills and resolutions they were to vote on to the board and the public. Sweeney doesn’t have a vote on the board, but he’s responsible for implementing what the board votes on.

The village manager plays an integral role in village government. They’re responsible for preparing the annual budget, overseeing day-to-day operations of the village’s eight departments, hiring and supervising staff and implementing policies the board passes.

But Sweeney said it’s got the “least-defined” job in the village — a jack-of-all-trades of sorts.

The board sets policy and he enforces it. Sweeney said his goal was always to apply policy fairly. He said he doesn’t believe in gray areas.

Sweeney said his measures of success from his time at the village are to leave the village better than he found it, and to have been a good person while doing his job. He feels successful in both.

Sweeney said consistency in government is important.

“This is not something you just learn. It took me 20 years,” Sweeney said, but he also said, “You can’t get the job without the experience. You can’t get the experience without the job.”

He said he’s a phone call away for village staff who have any questions.

“Positions will always open up,” Williams said. “It’s just the circle of life.”

His goal is to get someone who will learn fast, adjust and stay for a while. He said in the transition it will take a while to get up to full speed, but they’ll get there.

–

Emotional departure

–

Sweeney is leaving a job where he spent 18 years working with people who became some of his closest friends.

There’s a lot of memorable days he’s had at the village, but the hardest one for him to talk about is the day the Department of Public Works Superintendent Robert Martin came to Sweeney and told him he was dying.

Eight years later, on Tuesday, Sweeney welled up with emotion. He let it out, took a walk around the meeting room in the village offices, dried his eyes and said Martin was the smartest, toughest most genuine person he’s worked with.

“I remember the day he came in and told me he was dying,” Sweeney said. “Probably still kills me to this day.”

Sweeney was asked if he felt his fellow village employees were like family.

“F*** yeah,” Sweeney said. “Excuse my French. … It’s the only way we get anything done.”

Every one of the village staff exceeds their job description by a lot, he said.

Robert’s son Dustin is now the DPW superintendent, and his grandfather was a foreman in the department before him, Sweeney said.

Though the job is challenging and stressful, Sweeney said he’s enjoyed it. But he’s tired.

“Being released is good and bad,” Sweeney said. “I’m going to make the best of it no matter what.”

What he does next is to be determined, he said. First, he needs time off. He said he hasn’t taken a vacation more than a couple days in five years and when he’s out he’s always on his phone or email. Then, he’s going to work on projects at home and find a new job — probably something to do with his hands, he said. He’s tired of paperwork.

“I’ve always liked electricity,” Sweeney said.

This week, Sweeney said he’s got a lot to do to line up for the next manager.

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)

• Daily Newsletter
• Breaking News
• Obituaries

Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *

• Yes
• No