Ousted workers gripe

RENSSELAERVILLE — As the town board continues to discuss laws on spending and nepotism, uncertainty surrounds appointments made on New Year’s Day.
Sarah Packard, who was appointed as a clerk to the supervisor, said last week she will be "unable to continue" as clerk to the supervisor "due to the added responsibility of college."

Packard, who is not enrolled in a political party, was appointed by all members of the politically-divided board.
In another New Year’s Day appointment, the Democrats appointed Chris Heath and Steve Pfleging as "foremen to town building maintenance." It appeared Heath and Pfleging had replaced Randy Bates, Bob Bolte, and K.B. Cooke, who were hired earlier by the town as part-time workers.
But Bolte, a licensed electrician, told The Enterprise this week that he and the two other men "were hired, not appointed," and have not been "dismissed."
"We now have five town employees," Bolte said. Bolte questioned Heath and Pfleging’s qualifications and their appointment. (See letter to the editor.)

In his letter, Bolte criticizes the work on Town Hall by Heath and Pfleging, stating the windows are at the wrong height, siding was thrown away instead of being re-used, and that they returned siding without town permission before the job was done.

Pfleging responded through The Enterprise yesterday, saying that he and Heath built a wall near the ramp used by people with handicaps. The wall at the front entrance of Town Hall is to block the wind and stop ice from forming, he said. Pfleging lowered the windows, he said, so that those in wheelchairs are able to look out of them as they use the ramp.

On the work on the back entrance of the Town Hall building, Pfleging said, he and Heath bent metal and made a frame to make it look more uniform.

He had ordered siding, he said, but cancelled the order.

After first talking with G. Jon Chase, the town’s highway superintendent, he returned two boxes of vinyl shakes to G & H, the company from which they were ordered.

Those who had worked on town projects before he and Heath were appointed, had ordered too much, Pfleging said; two-and-a-half boxes were left over. He knew he would not get fully reimbursed for the shakes but thought returning them was better than not putting the taxpayers’ money to work.

He kept half a box, Pfleging said, to be used to replace shakes that are damaged by lawnmowers and weed-eaters. He and Heath threw away siding that was too short to use, he said.

Pfleging, who did not attend the town meeting when their work was discussed, said he has pictures of his work as well as work done by the previous group that had been hired by the town.

State and county requirements

According to David Walker, the deputy personnel officer with the Albany County Department of Civil Service, there are three forms municipalities fill out when making personnel changes — one is for creating new positions, another is used when replacing a worker in the same position, and a third is an application for a change in title.

When a municipality hires or fires a worker, it must submit a Report of Personnel Change to the department of Civil Service, Walker said.
When a town fires employees, Walker said, "I’d want to look at the people they’re firing."

If a town employee is fired and is in a competitive job, as defined by the Civil Service, they have a right to a hearing, he said. If they are of the labor class — having no qualifications and are unskilled — they have no Section 75 rights, he said.

Bolte, a Conservative, said Pfleging does not live in Rensselaerville.

Laws would affect public officers differently than municipal workers, who, as a general rule, would not face any residency requirements, said Eamon Moynihan, spokesman for the state’s Department of State.

Packard leaves

Packard attends the State University of New York College of Agriculture and Technology at Cobleskill, and is majoring in business administration.
She said last week, "When I took this position, I was hopeful and excited that it would be both a learning experience and community-oriented experience. Unfortunately, the personal agendas and vendettas that are involved in the decision-making on the town government are shameful and disgraceful." (See letter to the editor.)

When she was hired, Packard was taught by Andrea Cornwell. The Democrats replaced Cornwell with Brian Fitzgerald on New Year’s Day.
"When the board let (Cornwell) go, it left me in a position to try and figure things out as I go along, on top of trying to get things re-organized when they were left in a pile or thrown in a box under the desk," Packard said.
Packard said she will stay on to help a new person but will not take responsibility for fines and penalties because tax forms had not been completed or were "done wrong."

Packard referred to Brian Fitzgerald, who was appointed by the Democratic majority on Jan. 1.
"The accountant that you hired has failed to answer any calls or to provide any help or guidance. Several appointments were made and he never showed up," Packard said.

Fitzgerald said yesterday he did not accept the position and that he cannot work with the town’s supervisor, Jost Nickelsberg.

Before the beginning of the year, Fitzgerald said, he had been approached by Councilman Gary Chase, who told him Brenda Wood, whom Fitzgerald had worked with in the past, would be appointed as the town’s comptroller.

Wood, a Democrat, had been the clerk to the supervisor before Nickelsberg took office.

In January, the town board repealed motions that had been made by the Democrats on New Year’s Day; the board repealed the motions that created a town comptroller position and the appointment of Wood to the post.
"She’s not in so I’m not in," Fitzgerald said of Wood.