To the editor:

I am profoundly disappointed that our village board failed to even discuss Bill 85 at their most recent meeting.

Bill 85 would have appointed Sue Smith Zukin and Jake Vennie-Vollrath to the Downtown Advisory Board. Both nominees were moved forward by Community Development Director Jamie Konkoski after a thorough vetting process.

After Trustee Brunette made the motion on Bill 85, Trustees Little, Shapiro, and Catillaz stared at the floor while the bill failed. Even if these trustees opposed one or both nominations, they could’ve seconded the motion, explained their position, and voted no.

Instead, the public was greeted with an all too familiar response from our board: silence. No discussion, no explanation.

I am particularly disappointed in Trustee Catillaz, who two weeks earlier made the motion on Bill 78, which would have paid $6,000 to the New York State Association of Chiefs of Police to find our next police chief, despite several racist and conspiratorial comments from the organization’s executive director, and several public comments raising that concern.

The village is weaker because of our trustees’ inaction. The Downtown Advisory Board has been seeking volunteers since at least Aug. 2, 2021. Approximately two months later, the board decided against appointing two new members, for reasons they don’t believe we should be privy to.

I believe it’s the volunteers that make Saranac Lake decidedly different. As several committees struggle to find those volunteers, the least the village board could do is explain why they are rejecting qualified applicants instead of filling vacant positions.

David Lynch

Saranac Lake

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Sources:

https://saranaclakeny.gov/corecode/uploads/document6/uploaded_pdfs/corecode/2021-9-27_1426.pdf

https://www.facebook.com/villagesaranaclake/posts/10158531849281094

Board scraps vote on police chief search contract

https://saranaclakeny.gov/corecode/uploads/document6/uploaded_pdfs/corecode/Trustees_Meeting_Recording_Monday_September_27_2021_1414_1427.pdf