Michael Woyton • Poughkeepsie Journal • August 26, 2010
FISHKILL — Did requesting town financial records cost a councilman his committee liaison assignments in the Town of Fishkill?
The answer depends on whom you talk to.
Councilman Bob LaColla said he was removed as liaison from all his committee assignments by Supervisor Joan Pagones because he requested financial records relating to the Wladis Law Firm’s consulting job with the town.
“I find it unusual that I can obtain financial records from neighboring municipalities easier than I can from the town in which I am a duly elected official,” LaColla said.
Comptroller Bob Wheeling said Pagones wanted to delay by a couple of days his request for the records. LaColla then submitted a formal request through the state’s Freedom of Information Law.
Pagones said LaColla’s duties were taken away because he failed to do anything with the assignments he was given. Town law gives the supervisor the ability to assign liaisons and remove them.
LaColla’s assignments included assessor, planning, zoning, schools and historic organizations.
“He’s done nothing on the work on the recreation building,” she said, adding the roof of the new building had some problems.
LaColla said he was never assigned to work on the recreation building.
As the schools and assessor liaison, he said he has been working with the Wappingers school district on ways to share costs on disputed tax bills. For the housing committee, he was putting together a database for housing inventory and applicants. For the planning and zoning boards, he said, he instituted land-use training.
LaColla was recently removed as liaison to the town Environmental Board. He was replaced by Councilwoman Heather Malvarosa.
Environmental board member Bill Murnane, a town Republican Committee member, protested the change.
“The man is a major resource of information,” he said. “If we had to pay a consultant, we wouldn’t be able to afford it.”
At a recent meeting, LaColla proposed a resolution to authorize the review of the Wladis Law Firm’s financial claims against the town.
The resolution was defeated, with Pagones, Deputy Supervisor Steve Ferguson and Malvarosa voting against it.
Reach Michael Woyton at mwoyton@poughkeepsiejournal.com or 845-451-4518.
