Put Barnicle Pay Issue to Bed Quickly

by: Bill Liblick

Three cheers for State Supreme Court Justice Robert A. Sackett in dismissing the lawsuit filed against Village of Monticello Mayor Jim Barnicle.

Village of Monticello Trustees Scott Schoonmaker and Gordon Jenkins are good men who really care about the Village of Monticello, but their lawsuit alleging that Mayor Jim Barnicle illegally gave himself a pay raise reeked of petty politics and pure hatred from the start. The entire matter was uncalled for.

Prior to hiring Ray Nargizian as their new manager, Barnicle paid himself $2,000 a month for taking over the managerial duties of the village until a replacement for Richard Sush was found.

Even though they did not question his job performance, Democrat Scott Schoonmaker and Republican Gordon Jenkins argued that Barnicle illegally paid himself, because the board did not approve a salary increase. Village law states that the mayor takes over the duties of manager until a replacement is found. 

Instead of filing the lawsuit, all Schoonmaker and Jenkins had to do was bring the salary matter for a vote and it would have been settled. When there was an attempt from trustees Victor Marinello, and Brian Vandermark to do just that, both men stopped the vote from taking place. Maybe Barnicle made a mistake, it happens.

After the ruling, all sides stated that the issue should be put behind and that there should be a united front to solve the problems confronting the village.

This all sounds great, but hold your horses, there are still issues which still need to be resolved.

Judge Sackett’s decision now leaves room for Barnicle to receive even more money than he initially requested from the Village. And, then there is the $10,000 in legal fees the Village had to shell out to defend the Mayor. Will Schoonmaker and Jenkins reimburse the village?

Indeed, putting the matter behind will most likely will be easier said than done.

The Village of Monticello has accomplished a great deal within the past few months. Crime is down, the fight against street gangs is succeeding, and taxes have been lowered. There has been an all out drive to attract new businesses and affordable housing construction to the village. Code enforcement is a priority, as is making towns and villages whole.

Ray Nargizian probably would not have been hired if Barnicle’s salary did not come up in the first place. What a loss that would have been. Instead of Nargizian the person selected most likely would have been a political hack. So, some good did come out of all this, but the lawsuit was unnecessary.

Never has there been a person with the ability, fortitude, resources and broad spectrum of qualifications to properly manage the Village of Monticello as Ray Nargizian.

He has been a unifying and comforting voice for all the residents of the Village of Monticello. His scope of understanding how government is run, along with his vision complements one another. 

Ray Nargizian has demonstrated that he can get everyone on the same page to work together despite political differences.

There is still a lot to do in the Village of Monticello, but it is moving rapidly in its path to progress. Hopefully the Barnicle pay issue will be put to bed quickly, and the entire episode will not take the village two steps backward.

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