MAMAKATING – After having his voter registration "purged" by the Sullivan County Board of Elections (SCBoE) several weeks ago, Planning Board Chairman John Piazza can no longer legally serve on the Town of Mamakating Planning Board. This conclusion was reached at this past Tuesday's town meeting, with the town board ultimately acknowledging that there is now a vacancy for the chairmanship, as well as an empty seat on the board. It should be noted that the planning board does have several alternate members, one of whom will undoubtedly step in to fill the vacant seat.

A relatively large audience was in attendance at this past Tuesday's town board meeting, with the hope that the board would address this ongoing issue, which has created a great deal of controversy over the past few years. Evidence that Piazza is not a resident of Mamakating has been accumulating for quite some time, due primarily to the dogged efforts of Summitville resident Rich Morris. When the meeting opened up for public comments, Mr. Morris was the first to speak.

"As of Friday, June 25, Mr. Piazza has been purged from the voter rolls in Sullivan County," he said. He then cited Town Law Article 3, section 23, which states: "Every elective officer…and every other officer of the town, at the time of his appointment and throughout the term of office, shall be an elector of the town." The term "elector" means a person who could register as a voter in the town. "This is a black and white issue," said Mr. Morris. Mr. Piazza is not a resident, and cannot register to vote in the town, he said.

When asked what action the Town Board plans to take in light of this situation, Supervisor Baird replied that the matter is under review by their lawyers. This response sparked angry comments from the public.

"Why was this issue not in the work session?" one resident said.

The other comments from the gallery were somewhat less forgiving.

"Let's have the law mean something!" one said.

"We've been getting garbage answers for years," said another. "There's no shame with this group!"

Finally, Supervisor Baird took back control of the meeting. "I've listened to the public," he said, "and I'm going forward."

Later, after an executive session, the board announced that there is now a vacancy on the Mamakating Town Planning Board.

Councilman Ted Brebbia, when reached for comment the following day, said that the issue was already decided after the SCBoE purged Piazza's registration.

"The law is the law; it's very clear," Brebbia said. "We have an obligation to uphold the law."

Brebbia went on to say that, given the ruling by SCBoE, there is simply no legal way for Piazza to continue serving.

"There was no request for a resignation," Brebbia said, as the SCBoE ruling constituted a de facto removal of Piazza. Town officials must be an "elector" of the Town of Mamakating — that is, a person legally registered to vote in the town — in order to serve on a government body.

Mort Starobin, who serves on the Mamakating Planning Board, said that he too felt that the law is clear in this matter, but that he also felt strongly that Piazza had always done an excellent job as chairman, and that he will be hard to replace.

"He's been a very good leader," Starobin said. "Whatever his opinions were, they were never apparent, either behind closed doors or out in the audience. He was always generous to me. I think it's a loss for the town."

The Journal also attempted to reach Town Supervisor Harold Baird, but these calls were not immediately returned.

As of this week, it remains unclear as to whom the town board will choose to succeed Piazza, or whether Piazza will find some way to legally reestablish his residency in the town. It is thought that Gary Tetz, who has chaired several planning board meetings in Piazza's absence, will likely step in as a temporary replacement.

The next planning board meeting is this coming Tuesday, July 13, at 7 p.m.