Smithtown Dish – small bites of foodie news - Elegant Eating Goes To Bloomingdales

Smithtown Dish – small bites of foodie news

By Nancy Vallarella

T O D A Y!!

Bloomingdales Walt Whitman Mall, Huntington @ 1:00pm

Join Myra Naseem and Neil Schumer from Elegant Eating of Smithtown for a food demonstration in honor of Black History month.  Menu includes Double Corn Muffins, Southern Fried Chicken with Apple Cider Syrup and Sautéed Collard Greens, Kale, and Swiss Chard.

Editorial - Town Government Is In Shambles

“All’s well that ends well” Supervisor Patrick Vecchio after the special town board meeting Thursday evening.

With a 3-0 unanimous vote, Patrick Vecchio and Lynne C. Nowick were appointed to their positions on the Town Board. Thus ending the vulgar one week saga of Oathgate. A kumbaya moment. Right? Hardly.

While many people attending the meeting were overjoyed with the appointment of Patrick Vecchio to his position of Supervisor, not everyone was satisfied with the meeting.  In fact few people were satisfied. Many in the audience wanted the opportunity to speak. They wanted to applaud the board’s unanimous decision and they wanted the opportunity to say what was on their mind face to face to Town Clerk Vincent Puleo and others who they believed knew in advance that the oath’s were not signed.  Audience members wanted to proclaim their anger that a town board made up of all Republicans could have been decapitated by Town Clerk Vincent Puleo, a member of the Conservative Party. They wanted to say they didn’t believe that it was an accident or a coincidence that thirty days passed without the clerk’s office noticing that the paperwork was not filed as required by law. 

But they were not alone. Town Clerk Vincent Puleo also wanted to speak. Had he been allowed he would have talked about an intolerable situation at Town Hall, where two years lapsed without communication between he and the supervisor. He would have said that it was Vecchio and Nowick’s responsibility to file the paperwork and that he should not be blamed. He would have said that he never tried to disenfranchise Smithtown voters by negating an election on a technicality he was doing his job. Puleo, if he had been allowed to speak, would also have said that he is a man of integrity. He would have said that leaving for vacation immediately upon submitting his memo vacating the offices held by Vecchio and Nowick should not be attributed to a plan, but rather an innocent scheduled vacation. 

Also in the audience were people like Eddie Haeffer the candidate who opposed Vincent Puleo in last November’s election. Haeffer speculated that a deal was negotiated to allow the two appointments. He said he would be watching votes carefully over the next year to see if board members change their positions. A sobering thought for some members of the audience who worked tirelessly to elect members sympathetic to their positions.

The appointment of Vecchio and Nowick was the right thing to do. Election results should not be overturned by a town clerk. An investigation by an outside agency is warranted. Locally, the Board should review town code to amend it to assign responsibility for the oath of office and its filing to the clerk’s office. On the state level this archaic law needs to be addressed and changed not for Smithtown as a local law but for the entire state. Never again should a voter feel that their vote doesn’t matter.

Oathgate is far from over. No one is buying into this kumbaya moment. Town Hall has been ripped open and people are watching. Smithtown’s Town government is in shambles. 

All’s well that ends well? We won’t know that until it’s over and that’s not going to happen any time soon!

Pat 

Editorial - Smithtown's Highway Department Gets Us Through The Week

Recent events at Town Hall have cast a pall over town government negatively tainting the perception of the leadership, responsibility and concern for the public by some of our elected officials. A special Town Board meeting during Thursday’s snow/ice/rain/snow event could have prevented the public from attending. For many (myself included) there was more than a little anxiety about driving and parking at the meeting venue. But thanks to Smithtown’s Highway Department, not only were the roads clear, the parking lot at Smithtown’s Senior Center (the site of the meeting) was plowed and accessible for the attendees who filled the center. An amazing accomplishment given the fourteen inches of snow that fell.

Even though there are four and a half weeks of winter remaining,  Smithtown Matters would like to acknowledge the work being done by the Smithtown Highway Department. Snow removal is not an easy task. Keeping the roads clear of snow and ice has certainly been a challenge during the 2013-14 winter season, but  Superintendent of Highways Glenn Jorgensen and the men and women of the department have risen to the challenge and gotten the job done. 

Although most residents will acknowledge that they would prefer not to see another Smithtown Highway truck out plowing for the rest of the winter, it is the highway workers that we look for as the snow begins to fall. It is you who we bemoan when the bottom of our cleared driveway is plowed-in and needs to be re-shoveled, but it is also your work that allows us to get to our jobs, grocery stores, schools etc.. And, it is the Highway Department workers that clear the way for  emergency vehicles to get to hospitals, fires and accident scenes. 

This weekend the weather service is predicting an additional 2-4 inches of snow in our area . By now everyone should know the commonsense rules: don’t obstruct the path of the plow by parking on the roads, don’t tailgate plows and sanders, don’t shovel snow into the road and when there is limited visibility don’t go out. Hopefully knowing the rules translates into following them.

Enough said. Although people are often readily available to criticize, good work is not often publicly recognized.  Kudo’s to the Highway Department employees and private contractos for allowing Smithtown’s drivers to get through the week, and the 2013-2014 winter. 

Pat

Smithtown You Have A Supervisor - Vecchio And Nowick Appointed

Supervisor Vecchio signs his Oath of OfficeThe Town Board met Thursday evening to appoint Patrick Vecchio and Lynne C. Nowick to the offices they were elected to fill in the November 2013 election. The ceremony was brief, the audience was filled with Vecchio supporters, curious residents and political beings. They showed their affection and support for the Supervisor with applause and cheers.

Deputy Supervisor Tom McCarthy read a resolution calling for a vote to appoint Patrick Vecchio to the office of Supervisor for a term ending Dec. 31, 2014. Town Clerk Vincent Puleo called the names of the three seated councilmen. Councilman McCarthy “yes”, Councilman Wehrheim “yes”, Councilman Creighton “yes”. Finished. The thirty-five year incumbent was back in office; at least for another year. Applause followed. Supervisor Vecchio was seated in the front row of seats taking it all in. 

The second resolution called for the appointment of Lynne C. Nowick. Again a unanimous vote. Councilwoman Nowick was not in attendance. 

McCarthy thanked the Councilmen and invited Judge J. Toomey up to the dais to administer the oath of office to Patrick Vecchio. He then requested that the Supervisor sign the oath making it official. Supervisor Vecchio went on to thank the councilmen and the audience for their support.

Meeting adjourned. There was no opportunity for the public to comment.

Town Clerk Vincent Puleo in an interview with Smithtown Matters Thursday afternoon said he was going to address the Town Board at the meeting. There was no opportunity for him to do so. He had copies of his prepared text which he distributed to the press.

Town Clerk Vincent Puleo’s statement:

This past week has seemingly been open season on my integrity and honor. Although I was out of town on a pre-arranged vacation, my silence has been deemed an admission of some sort of guilt. I assure you that guilt is the last emotion I feel as I seek to set the record straight. The saying “Don’t shoot the Messenger” has never been truer than in this instance.

There have been many false statements regarding how the Oaths of Office have previously been filed here in Smithtown. NEVER have I or any member of my staff ever brought the required paperwork to a Town Official. All officials including Supervisor Vecchio, have ALWAYS come to the office of the Clerk, and whether witnessed by myself or my staff, executed all documents in my office. ln 2005 & 2010 the oaths were signed in my office after the swearing in on the steps of Town Hall.

There are many offices in Smithtown both elected and appointed which are never sworn in on the steps of Town Hall. But most of those individuals managed to find their way to the Clerk’s Office within the required time periods

It is somewhat disconcerting to me that this dereliction of duty has not been appropriately placed at the feet of those who failed to meet their obligations. Nor is it comprehensible to me how these individuals can show indignation and skirt their own failings without as much as an apology to those who elected them.

There was no agenda, no grand conspiracy. No one purposely withheld information from anyone. The office of the Clerk was available to all those who had a responsibility pursuant to their job description to use due diligence to insure that their Oaths of Office were filed on time.

Lastly, may I say that I am as disturbed as my fellow residents that such a debacle has occurred in our Town. However, it would have been a dereliction of my duties to fail to report the lack of filings. As an elected official myself, I take pride in doing my due diligence in effectuating my job.

It is my hope, that I have clarified some of the misconceptions and laid to rest the conspiracy theories which have found their way in to the media.

Vincent Puleo Town Clerk

Town Clerk Vinny Puleo "I was never looking to disenfranchise the public's vote..."

Exclusive with Town Clerk Vinny Puleo

I Was Never Looking To Disenfranchise the Public’s Vote

by Maureen Ledden Rossi

Smithtown Matters spoke with Smithtown Town Clerk Vinny Puleo in his office today as he was readying for tonight’s special Town Board meeting.  Puleo was out of town until yesterday but has kept on top of all the media both written and broadcast.   “The Supervisor is telling the media that I always bring the paperwork to him, that’s simply not true,” he explained.  Puleo was first elected in 2006 and said the program that year included the Swearing Inn Ceremony and was followed immediately by Judge Toomey and all the elected officials going into his office.  The Judge first signed all the Oaths of Office, then the elected officials followed suit.    He said the exact same scenario played out in 2010 when Supervisor Vecchio was re-elected once again.  Smithtown Matters viewed the Oath’s of Office for Supervisor Vecchio for both 2006 and 2010 at the Town Clerk’s office earlier this week and in both circumstances; they were indeed signed on January 1^st.

Puleo despite much criticism is saying that he had no idea the Oaths of Offices were not signed and said the situation was the result of a very bad political climate between he and the Supervisor for the last two years.  “He’s the Supervisor, we are supposed to work together,” said Puleo.  However he said that the Supervisor has not uttered a single word to him in two years; that the Supervisor only deals with his First Deputy, Maureen Sussillo.   “He doesn’t even deal with me on my budget, he refuses to deal with me,” he explained.   “He doesn’t like me because I supported Creighton, big deal, the election is over.”

Puleo said that back in November right after the election he had all the Oaths of Office typed up and put into a book.   Puleo said that Judge Toomey was scheduled to come in to sign the Oaths sometime after the January 1^st Swearing Inn Ceremony.  Toomey had a slight scheduling conflict the day he was due to come in because of a court date so Puleo met him earlier so he could sign every single document. 

“Everything was printed up and ready to go, McCarthy came on January 10^th and asked where they were and I told him in the book,” he shared.   “McCarthy came in my office and I swore him in, then he signed the book and left,” he added.  Puleo said McCarthy had to get sworn in two times, once for Town Councilman and once for his appointed role as Deputy Supervisor (he was appointed such at the January 8^th organizational meeting hence the need for the 2^nd swearing in).

Puleo said that he never thought twice about the possibility that the Supervisor wouldn’t sign the book.  “He has three secretaries, a Deputy Supervisor and a Town Attorney,” he said.  Puleo said he is sincerely disheartened about the entire situation.  “It’s very unfortunate, I feel horrible that this happened,” he added.   However, The Town Clerk feels like he is being made the fall guy.   “Vecchio’s blaming everyone except himself, it’s everyone’s fault except his,” he lamented.   The seasoned elected official claims it’s a tactic the Town Supervisor uses to incite people.  “He’s tainting people, saying this is going to cost more money for a special election, but it’s not going to be a special election, there is one scheduled for a Congressional seat and for a Senate and Assembly seat,” he explained.    Municipal attorney Paul Sabatino, II corroborated that saying it’s only considered a special election when it doesn’t take place on Election Day. 

“As far as Lynne Nowick, I never thought about it, she got sworn in by Judge Sgroi, I thought she would take care of it herself,” he added.  He said it’s not customary for him to check the book.    He said after 20 years in public service he thought she would know that a paper had to be signed. 

“I was never looking to disenfranchise the public’s vote, it disturbs me that my fellow residents might feel that way and it disturbs me that my fellow residents have to go through such a debacle,” he explained.  Puleo plans on reading a statement at tonight’s special Town Board meeting called by Deputy Supervisor Tom McCarthy.  Puleo said that he took an Oath of Office and had to by law report the missing signatures.  “It would have been a dereliction of my duties to fail to report the lack of signatures,” he ended.   

The Town Clerk’s office is essentially the Secretary to the Town Board.  They deal with death and birth certificates, they do marriages in the office.  Puleo call it’s a bustling office, a hub of Town Hall.  They also handle multiple types of licensing, for boats, mooring, commercial garbage trucks, etc.  Puleo says Section 30 Subdivision 8 of the town law reads:    An office becomes vacant upon the refusal or neglect of the incumbents to file his Oath of Office with the Town Clerk.    Did Vecchio and Nowick neglect their duties, some say yes, many say no.   Did Puleo fail to do his job?   Many say yes, some say no.  Is this an archaic law that should be overturned?   Senator Flanagan and Assemblyman Fitzpatrick think so and are publicly calling for the over one-hundred old law to be overturned and they will be bringing their lofty desire to Albany. 

“They (the state) can carve out a special exception for this situation or change the statute going forward,” explained Sabatino.  He said given the fact that the law has been on the books for a one hundred years, if they are going to do it they should do it across the board.  Is it likely the law will be changed?   “There have been numerous occasions for the state to change the law, one of the cases the court specifically said, this is a matter that has been sacrosanct,” he explained.   He added that it would be an extraordinary event if they did change the law. He says the real question is once you open up the door, how far do you open up the door?    He questioned will they do it for this one case or with they do it for Suffolk County or will it be statewide.   “Under the present penalty under the law Vecchio and Nowick would have to run again in the general election and according to the Court of Appeals they would have to give back their salary from January to whatever the date of their valid appointment, he ended. 

Update on Thursday, February 13, 2014 at 9:51PM by .

Town Clerk Vincent Puleo was prepared to give the following presentation to the Town Board. Comments were not permitted. Mr. Puleo distributed his statement.

Vincent Puleo’s comments:

This past week has seemingly been open season on my integrity and honor. Although I was out of town on a pre-arranged vacation, my silence has been deemed an admission of some sort of guilt. I assure you that guilt is the last emotion I feel as I seek to set the record straight. The saying “Don’t shoot the Messenger” has never been truer than in this instance.

There have been many false statements regarding how the Oaths of Office have previously been filed here in Smithtown. NEVER have I or any member of my staff ever brought the required paperwork to a Town Official. All officials including Supervisor Vecchio, have ALWAYS come to the office of the Clerk, and whether witnessed by myself or my staff, executed all documents in my office. ln 2005 & 2010 the oaths were signed in my office after the swearing in on the steps of Town Hall.

There are many offices in Smithtown both elected and appointed which are never sworn in on the steps of Town Hall. But most of those individuals managed to find their way to the Clerk’s Office within the required time periods

It is somewhat disconcerting to me that this dereliction of duty has not been appropriately placed at the feet of those who failed to meet their obligations. Nor is it comprehensible to me how these individuals can show indignation and skirt their own failings without as much as an apology to those who elected them.

There was no agenda, no grand conspiracy. No one purposely withheld information from anyone. The office of the Clerk was available to all those who had a responsibility pursuant to their job description to use due diligence to insure that their Oaths of Office were filed on time.

Lastly, may I say that I am as disturbed as my fellow residents that such a debacle has occurred in our Town. However, it would have been a dereliction of my duties to fail to report the lack of filings. As an elected official myself, I take pride in doing my due diligence in effectuating my job.

It is my hope, that I have clarified some of the misconceptions and laid to rest the conspiracy theories which have found their way in to the media.

Vincent Puleo Town Clerk