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| 3/8/2010 12:37:00 AM | Email this article • Print this article | Isabel discloses budget meeting
Jessica Maher
Reporter
Days after lambasting a closed-door meeting scheduled by Amsterdam Mayor Ann Thane to review the proposed 2010-11 budget, an alderman has admitted his own role in a similar meeting.
"I can't admit that I was right," said 1st Ward Alderman Joseph Isabel. "I contradicted myself and I will never do that again."
On Feb. 28, a day after city aldermen received a copy of the budget proposal, Isabel said he was invited to and attended a meeting with 5th Ward Alderman Richard Leggiero, former Mayor Joseph Emanuele and former city Assessor Michael Chiara to review the document.
"No basic decisions or cuts were actually made," said Leggiero. "We just wanted to see how it basically differed from last year's budget."
During a Common Council meeting two days later, Isabel made himself clear by declaring that no budget meetings should be conducted without the involvement of the entire Budget Review Committee, which is comprised of the mayor, controller and five aldermen.
Following the airing of Isabel's concerns, Thane announced she'd be meeting to discuss the budget with Corporation Counsel Gerard DeCusatis, former 3rd Ward Alderwoman and former City Controller Kim Brumley and Thom Georgia, confidential aide to the mayor. Reynicke had been invited but declined to attend, saying she felt the entire Budget Review Committee should be involved.
The purpose of the gathering, said Thane, was to prepare for Tuesday's meeting of the Finance Committee in which the proposed budget will be discussed for the first time.
"What angered me was her meeting was supposed to be at City Hall and it was between her aide and a former councilman," said Isabel. "I have a problem having an aide invited to a meeting and a former alderman invited to a meeting, but she could say the same thing about me."
Thane, who had not known about Isabel and Leggiero's meeting, said that every alderman should be reviewing the budget with experienced and knowledgeable people in anticipation of Tuesday's meeting.
"All of this pointing fingers and yelling about secret meetings is really taking our focus off of what's important," she said. "People need to be more mature about this process."
Leggiero doesn't regret taking part in the meeting with former city officials, because he said Thane has participated in the same sort of meetings throughout her administration. At the start of last year's budget process, aldermen received an altered spending plan after a closed-door weekend meeting involve Thane and selected personnel.
"Kim Brumley is not an alderperson anymore and what's Gerry [DeCusatis] doing on the budget?" said Leggiero. "We have seven people on this budget and Gerry's not one of them."
Neither Chiara nor Emanuele are on the Budget Review Committee either, Leggiero admitted.
Third Ward Alderwoman Gina DeRossi said she's concerned by both closed-door budget sessions.
"Part of me understands why they want to meet with outside advisors," she said. "I just feel like if we're going to have conversations like that ... can't we have them maybe a special guest at our budget meeting or something like that, so that we all are getting the benefit, not just in small groups?"
Going forward in the budget process, Leggiero and Isabel said they agree with DeRossi that future budget meetings should only take place with the Budget Review Committee.
"I really didn't want to attend that meeting but I was asked to attend," said Isabel. "I just feel that those meetings are wrong and I definitely will not conduct another one or be involved in another one."
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Contact Jessica Maher at jessica.maher@recordernews.com.
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Posted: Monday, March 08, 2010
Article comment by:
Harry Andersen
hyp·o·crite [hip-uh-krit] Show IPA
–noun
1.
a person who pretends to have virtues, moral or religious beliefs, principles, etc., that he or she does not actually possess, esp. a person whose actions belie stated beliefs.
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