WAWARSING – Questions regarding whether or not Rally New York will be holding a previously planned event in the town next month are being left unresolved, after the organization published an advertisement for the weekend of October 23 event in this very newspaper back in August. The issue stems from the fact that the three-year contract between Rally New York and the Town of Wawarsing was cancelled in a unanimous vote by the town council in July.

In a phone interview on Tuesday, Ivan Orisek, president of the Rally New York organization, would neither confirm nor deny whether or not the event would take place next month.

"I cannot tell you 'yes' or 'no' because of the current situation," said Orisek. "We feel that the contract was terminated without reason, and we also feel that that termination would not stand in the court of law."

Orisek said that the organization published the advertisement in August so as to conform to the contract's stipulations that upcoming events be adequately advertised and that the public be notified. When the contract was nullified, allegations were made against Rally New York that they had not fulfilled this requirement of the contract previously.

"We bring hundreds of people to the town, and they spent a lot of money there," said Orisek of Rally New York's economic effect to the area. "If we bring an event like this to Wawarsing, it generates a lot of money for the community. I don't understand how it is possible that this is not recognized by the town board. I think that one of the fiduciary duties of the town board is not only to listen to residents, but also to safeguard the economic well-being of the community, and that can be done only by bringing events to Wawarsing.

"We are certainly not going to ram this down their throats if they think that our event is not beneficial to the town. We think that it's tremendously beneficial. We are receiving calls here periodically from businesses, [saying,] 'When are you coming? When can we get your business?' Friday I received such a call again," he said, noting that the call came from the Honor's Haven Resort and Spa.

Orisek also spoke about potential litigation against the town for what he alleges was an inappropriate contract nullification.

"We have been considering legal action, as we announced. That is still pending."

When asked if he would be appearing at an upcoming board meeting prior to the October event, he said, "No, I don't think that that would be productive. We are corresponding with them."

He also said that the fact that it is an election year was one of the motives behind the board's cancellation of the contract, beyond responding to the residents' allegations of Rally New York's failure to conform to the contract. When it was pointed out that only two of the five board members were up for reelection this year, Orisek said, "I can tell you that it was a factor…I've been told by them that it was a factor. But beyond that, your town, economically, is in dire straits, and it can use any dollar which we bring in. And this, for some reason, is not recognized, or is being glossed over by the town board."

When asked during a board meeting last month what would happen should the event take place in October, the town council said that, because the normal traffic laws would still be in effect, event participants would be breaking the law by racing on town roads, and would be subject to penalties for such violations. Usually, when an officially sanctioned Rally New York takes place, normal traffic laws are suspended.