Board members spar over committee appointments at first meeting of the year

The January 2 Monroe Town Board meeting marked the end of one era and the beginning of the next. Councilman Mike McGinn, voted on to the town board by United Monroe supporters eight years ago, received congratulations as his term came to an end. Monroe Town Supervisor Tony Cardone and McGinn were backed by United Monroe as part of an effort to remove former Supervisor Harley Doles from office. Since then; however, town board politics have shifted once again with the landslide election of newly appointed Councilwoman, Maureen Richardson.

Things came to a head with the objection of Supervisor Cardone’s nomination of Councilwoman Dorey Houle to the role of acting supervisor. Houle was appointed over the more experienced Councilwoman, Mary Bingham. Said Bingham at the meeting, “You have two board members who have been on this board much longer than Councilwoman Houle, I really feel both Councilman Scancarello and myself would be able to handle the position.” In a statement to The Photo News, Councilwoman Bingham highlighted her extensive experience serving the town of Monroe, first serving as chairwoman for the Monroe Planning Board for four years and then later serving as a member. She stated she’s been on the town board for six years and is into her second term, as opposed to Houle who is in her first.

When asked by The Photo News if the appointment of Houle over herself or Councilmen Scancarello was political, Bingham said, “I believe so. In the past when Rick Colon was on the town board, it was bi-partisan. Supervisor Cardone appointed Colon as acting supervisor. Supervisor Cardone is a Republican and Colon was a Democrat. Now Houle is a Republican, as he [Cardone] is and I am a Democrat. It was definitely political.” The councilwoman added, “I wish that the town board would be responsible enough to appoint the most experienced person available for a position.”

Houle ran against State Senator James Skoufis in 2022. She was defeated by 1,432 votes. Houle is expected to take another run against Skoufis in 2024. The potential for another Houle challenge to Skoufis prompted concerns by Councilwoman Maureen Richardson that Houle would be more focused on campaigning than governing. Regarding a statement on Houle’s campaign website where refers to the recently enacted law that consolidates local elections to even number years as something “meant to destroy our democracy,” Richardson said, “After the election results I think there is a clear call for bipartisanship and as a town board member I wouldn’t appoint someone actively campaigning for a different office.”

Later in the meeting, Supervisor Cardone motioned to replace Mary Bingham with Houle on the Moodna Conservation Commission. It was not made clear why this change was requested. In a statement to The Photo News, Councilwoman Bingham stated that prior to the start of the town board meeting, only her name and Houle’s name were listed for appointment to the Moodna Conservation Commission. This was also the case on documents handed out to the town council at the meeting.

In a statement to The Photo News, Councilwoman Richardson said, “Appointing Dorey Houle as acting supervisor is a hyper-partisan choice considering the relevant experience of Councilwoman Bingham and her tenure with the town. To then remove her, our water infrastructure specialist from the Moodna sewer commission because we voiced the call for bipartisanship, shows the importance of an impartial ethics board dedicated to overseeing the conduct of the town board when such maneuvers are commonplace. In fact, we had to refer the issue of Houle’s appointment to the ethic’s board that very night.”

Later in the meeting, Cardone motioned to appoint departing board member Mike McGinn to the Town Ethics Committee, to which Richardson told The Photo News, “Mike McGinn’s eight-year tenure on the town board and personal relationships with those involved, I believe, prevents any possibility of impartiality over matters of ethics, despite his qualifications.”

During the meeting, Councilwoman Bingham pointed out that Councilmen Scancarello lives in the Moodna district, unlike Houle, as well as Highway Superintendent Pat Patterson. “I think it would be better if we had a resident who lived in the Moodna District actually serve on the commission because I think they would be able to understand the issues,” said Bingham. Richardson added that Patterson would be a better choice as well. Scancarello stated that he thought Houle would be a good choice given his busy schedule.” Cardone was then reminded by the town attorney that Councilwoman Bingham was also on that resolution for appointment. However, Cardone then made a motion to move on to the appointment to the Moodna Commission of another individual who was not listed on the agenda. Cardone then stated he wished for the board to vote on each nominee individually. However, Cardone failed to bring the vote for Bingham’s appointment to the Moodna Commission to the floor during this meeting.