Imagine my surprise, the Wellington Village Council was going to discuss our village manager’s employment (and possible replacement) but it wasn’t even on the meeting agenda as it was announced too late.
I knew this was going to happen when the village attorney was let go, which apparently was due to earlier ill feelings by the previous minority on the council. Politics as usual, but I would insert here that I am not privy to the inside workings of the relationship of council and the manager and/or the attorney.
Sadly, I am familiar with the new attorney, Laurie Cohen, who was quite rude the first time I met her (whilst I had yet to utter a word); and her nonsensical: “Wellington should secede from the county” is/was one of the most inane things I have heard, and finally her spearheading closing down the code compliance board of volunteer citizens, to be replaced by paid attorneys, and now recently the council has been complaining to the press about the leniency of the attorneys.
I have had numerous conversations with Mr. [Jeff] Kurtz, the previous attorney, and although we differed greatly on most politics, I highly respected him, and I thought his counsel was a benefit to our village.
I hope his replacement can fill his shoes, but her background makes that questionable! I was probably the most critical person in Wellington of the previous manager and of Paul Schofield as assistant manager, but after he became manager, I thought he did a good job, considering the politics.
I think the village has bigger issues, that of the Wellington Chamber, members of their board and associated members (Mark Bellissimo) who have embarked upon a campaign to denigrate our village (not just our council). When they speak of our village not being receptive to business, when indeed it was/is the over commercialization of our equestrian preserve, and only this property, that’s just plain insulting and wrong. They could learn a bit about propriety from the other area chamber.
Sadly, whereas our initial council after incorporation was voted in by the people (the recreation establishment) that has changed to the business community and one chamber, which appears to run their slate.
They screamed that one rich party influenced the election, but truth be it known, he represented us (the citizenry) better than the Wellington Chamber, because although he was protecting his own property, he was also stopping untold commercialism, and a huge hotel, which would have cost taxpayers millions to widen South Shore Blvd. and Lake Worth Road and still cause major traffic.
A village manager must wend his way through these personalities, and great rancorous issues, and I guess sometimes must pay the price. Yet it’s still politics. He needs three supporters on the council, and that can change during any election or any issue. I can only hope we keep Mr. Schofield, and if he is replaced, cross my fingers that we are getting something better, but that is an unknown entity.
George Unger, Wellington
