More Conflicts Of Interest, Lies and Ethics Violations

After we published the article about Mr Jones unrelenting drive to pass resolutions TB1 & TB2 on a previous Town Board agenda (see Monday, June 10, 2019 Misdirection, Lies and Ethics), we felt as though we were watching the “Greenburgh sausage” being made. We continued to dig and uncovered even more information that raises doubt about Mr Jones' sincerity of following an ethical course as a Councilman for the Town, liaison for the Greenburgh Housing Authority (GHA) or as an officer of the courts.

You'll recall during the meeting that Councilman Jones made a motion to vote on TB1 and TB2. Councilwoman Hendrickx, newly appointed moments earlier that same night, seconded his motion. After some back and forth, Councilman Sheehan requested those two resolutions be held over. Another argument ensued as Mr Jones insisted they vote on the resolutions. Mr Sheehan insisted that their rules and past procedure allowed any councilperson to hold over any resolution without cause. He's correct and even Mr Jones has held over resolutions. 

There was a contentious back and forth when someone said that Tim Lewis is the "Town Parliamentarian" and should tell them how they can proceed. At which point he said move to suspend the rules and then move the vote. We are not Parliamentarians but we have at least held a copy of Roberts Rules and question the legality, ethics and sensibility of this maneuver. Both resolutions passed with Councilwoman Juettner abstaining, stating they've never done this before and Mr Sheehan voting no. 

One of the issues we’ve uncovered was that Mr Jones, as liaison for the Town Board with the GHA, was also an attorney for the Bozeman Law Firm in Mt Vernon, NY. The Bozeman Law Firm is the law firm that represents the GHA. At one point in the arguing during the meeting, Mr Sheehan stated that a Town Board member even asked the Board of Ethics in 2018 about a possible conflict of interest. That got a rather loud and emotional reaction from Mr Jones. He claimed he had not gone to the Ethics Board and that Mr Sheehan’s assertion was ridiculous. Mr Sheehan said he never mentioned any names. But ABG will. We acquired a copy of the Ethics Board minutes and it shows below, Mr Jones appears to be lying, he was in attendance and he did in fact ask them for an unofficial ruling just as Mr Sheehan recounted. See below:

Mr Jones also stated that he no longer worked for the Bozeman Law Firm. But an email that was forwarded to us partially indicates otherwise. It shows that Mr Jones still may have an active address with Bozeman Law, which is indicated by the address at the bottom of the email. If he simply rented space from Bozeman it would still constitute a business arrangement and be wrong as well as unethical! Notice also that this is his private Gmail account with the Bozeman mailing address. Could he be using this to keep from having certain communications as a Town Board member from being F.O.I.L.-ed?

See below:

So with staffers digging, we checked the Board of Elections records for Mr Jones’ campaign donations. We found several interesting donations to the Committee To Elect Ken Jones, by people connected to the Town Board or seeking positions in the Town Administration. The first is from sitting Town Councilwoman Diana Juettner for $90; next is from Town Clerk candidate Maria Portilla for $50; Alfreda Williams for $200; Mona Fraitag for $500. Ms Fraitag was appointed this year to the Planning Board. There are others but we believe the next two are significant: Andre Early, Commissioner at the Theodore Young Community Center, for $75 and the Bozeman Law firm for $500! Sounds an awful lot like pay to play? 

Next up, we learned that there is an Ethics Board complaint that has been filed against Mr Jones. We sent a Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request to the Town Clerk requesting a copy of the complaint. This request was turned over to Town Attorney/HazMat Mitigation Specialist/Town Parliamentarian Tim Lewis who determined it should be rejected and cited what we believe is an unrelated case of the Herald Company vs City of Syracuse School District where the school district denied disclosing the name or charges against a tenured teacher.

Mr Jones, while believing Town Council positions may be a tenured position, is not a tenured teacher. Nor are we seeking the name of whom the complaint is made against, we already know it’s Mr Jones. What we want to know is what the complaint is for and who made the complaint? Actually, we know that Mr Rodney Lederer-Plaskett submitted the complaint, and ABG will be writing more about this soon. Once again Town Attorney Tim Lewis tried to cite an irrelevant case to stall our information request, a common tactic from this Town administration. But his case is not related to the requested information at hand and should have been released.

Moving right along on the Ethics Express, ABG learned a lawsuit has been filed by the Legal Services Hudson Valley (LSHV) group announcing that they have filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of five current and former tenants of the GHA against The Bozeman Law Firm, PLLC. The Mount Vernon law firm which represents the GHA (a public housing authority) in landlord-tenant disputes lawsuits.

The lawsuit claims that Bozeman Law repeatedly sues tenants in the GHA’s housing sites who receive Section 8 federal housing benefits for non-payment of rent, even though Bozeman Law knows that the sums it seeks are not “rent” by law and often not owed by the tenants. If a tenant obtains a lawyer, many have used LSHV staff attorneys to defend them, Bozeman Law immediately withdraws the legal proceedings. Shortly thereafter, they will re-initiate the same lawsuit based on the same or similar facts. This process is repeated again and again. There’s more but you get the idea.

So if Councilman/Liaison/Attorney Jones is/was/remains on the Town Board as a Councilman, how is it not a conflict of interest that he worked for the Bozeman Law firm who represents and also sues the residents of the GHA? Is the liaison (Jones) to the GHA with copious amounts of information from both sides, both suing and getting sued, over the same matters? And did he ever share any of this information with Town Attorney Tim Lewis, Supervisor Feiner and the Town Board? When he went to the Ethics Board to question a conflict of interest, was the entire story laid out to them or just a partial story or any story at all? Mr Feiner appoints the Ethics Board members. Is that a conflict of interest as well? The taxpayers deserve answers and justice. 

Finally, with the Democratic primary only days away, we’ve learned about the deals that were made behind closed doors for this election. Mr Feiner was promised the Democrats’ endorsement if he endorsed the entire ticket which did not include Gina Jackson at the time. He’s done that. It’s apparently the third or so time Mr Feiner has had the party endorsement. The Democrats’ logic is interesting now that Councilman Morgan has passed away. They will take Ken Jones over Eric Zinger because they don’t believe they can control Mr Zinger. They’re also afraid of Ms Jackson because she might be an independent thinker. We still believe Mr Zinger and Ms Jackson are the preferred candidates. 

We know politics is an ugly machine for most people and they tend to stay away from it. Most people are usually clueless to know the inner workings of Greenburgh politics. We hope that we’ve helped you get a glimpse into what’s going on. If you can, please go vote in the Democrat primary on Tuesday. We suggest moving away from Mr Jones this time around and hope others will take this information and finally do the right thing for our Town. It will make for A Better Greenburgh.

Misdirection, Lies and Ethics

It's no secret that our incestuous Town Board lies whenever convenient and makes decisions based on those lies. Mr Feiner, including then-Town Councilwoman Timmy Weinberg, was found guilty of discrimination in a Federal Court case that the Fortress Bible Church brought against the Town a number of years ago. Included in the 7-guilty verdicts were lying under oath and destroying evidence. Those lies cost the taxpayers $5.5 million dollars after the insurance paid $1 million. So it comes as no surprise that the autonomous inbreeding on Hillside Avenue has finally come to fruition. Now the rats are attacking themselves. 

Watching the Town Board meeting of May 22nd showed some of this infighting. Case in point was over TB1 and TB2 on the agenda. Below is the summary of each of those:

TB 1 - 5/22/19 Resolution authorizing the Town Supervisor of the Town of Greenburgh to enter into a Municipal Fee Agreement with Manhattan Avenue Senior LLC whereby Manhattan Avenue Senior LLC will pay a fee to the Town in the amount of $100,000 as reimbursement for the costs and expenses related to the development of up to (#units) residential housing units for seniors aged sixty-two (62) and older [#units still needs to be determined by the Town Board-- 66 or 82] (Held over to Town Board Meeting of June 12, 2019) 

TB 2 - 5/22/19 Resolution authorizing the Town Supervisor of the Town of Greenburgh to enter into a Tax Exemption Agreement with Manhattan Avenue Senior Housing Development Fund Corp., a New York not-for-profit corporation, which will hold title to the property located at 48, 50, 54, 56 and 58 Manhattan Avenue, currently owned by the Greenburgh Housing Authority, for the benefit of Manhattan Avenue Senior LLC, a for-profit entity that is a party to the Agreement, for the purpose of exempting an affordable housing project for seniors aged sixty-two (62) years and older from all local and municipal taxes (meaning all real property taxes levied by the Town of Greenburgh, the County of Westchester, the Greenburgh Central School district or any other taxing jurisdiction), other than assessments for local improvements and special district taxes, 100% of the value of the Property and Project for a period of thirty (30) years.(Held over to Town Board Meeting of June 12, 2019) 

It begins to get interesting at eight or nine-minutes into it after Bishop Preston took to the microphone and accused the Board of dragging its feet on approving the Municipal Fee Agreement with the Greenburgh Housing Authority (GHA). Bishop Preston proceeded to complain that it should not take this long to approve and that the Board should give a tax exemption or do a P.I.L.O.T. (Payment In Lieu Of Taxes) program in hopes of expediting the program before the Board, adding what they were doing was disrespectful and dishonorable to the seniors. He claimed that it had been pushed back numerous times again and again.

Mr Jones pontificated about being the Greenburgh Town Board liaison with the Greenburgh Housing Authority and that he was very aware of what was going on and that the agreement should be voted on, adding the GHA have come before them with their professional representatives and there is no reason not to take this vote. It’s just the tip of the iceberg and that this should not be held over. He then moved to vote on it. After being newly appointed that same night, Town Councilwoman Hendrickx fell in line and seconded the motion. 

True to his flawed character, Mr Feiner originally had postponed the vote late in the day but now confronted by an irate Jones, jumped on his bandwagon expressing his support for it, saying it was not a perfect agreement and we’ll have a real crisis if they don’t move forward with this. He continued that this is a crime that Greenburgh is not leading the way and voted yes. He also referenced the lack of funding for WestHelp and how it is wallowing due to a lack of funds. He neglected to mention that the entire WestHelp debacle and its current state was caused by him and his complicit Town Board. This too has cost taxpayers millions of dollars every year! 

Then Councilman Sheehan began to speak about the reason this resolution had been pulled from the agenda which was to give the new Board member (Hendrickx) time to study it before voting on it and got into a verbal back and forth with Councilman Jones. Mr Jones stated he knew nothing of the resolution being pulled from the agenda. Sheehan said that since Mr Feiner advertised this as being pulled from the agenda, many have not attended that night's meeting. He went on to discuss the affordable vs low income categories and the lack of paperwork that he's requested for at least two years to support the verbal commitments made to the Board. They’ve received nothing. 

Both Mr Jones and Bishop Preston (from the audience) stated the paperwork couldn’t be drafted until their petition was approved. If this was true, the paperwork could have been drafted, submitted and held contingent upon approval of the application. Mr Sheehan also stated he sees this lack of paperwork as contributing to the destruction of the Greenburgh Housing Authority. Frankly, it appears that this paperwork could have easily been drafted and submitted during that two year period. This seemingly small stumbling block could have been easily addressed during that time and this point would have been moot. As a matter of fact, taking two more weeks or so after over two years seems more than reasonable. 

Mr Sheehan then stated that the Housing Authority and the developer are using the same attorney, Lucia (last name unknown). Mr Jones interrupted him and said, “No they’re not. No they’re not. That’s a misrepresentation.” Mr Sheehan said she represents both, to which Mr Jones responded she represents the development company that both the Housing Authority and Georgica Green Ventures have formed together. The GHA has separate counsel. Mr Sheehan asked Mr Jones twice if they've actually formed that company and he did not answer. Once again, from the audience Bishop Preston could faintly be heard saying not until they get this resolution approved. 

The meeting seemed to devolve even faster from that point, especially when Mr Sheehan pointed out that a Board member went to the Ethics Board to find out if they should abstain from voting on GHA issues. That woke Mr Jones up who loudly told Mr Sheehan that that statement was not true and that he did not go to the Ethics Board. Mr Sheehan responded by saying he had not mentioned anyone by name. So we wonder, was Mr Jones feeling guilty about just lying to everyone thinking we wouldn’t find out?

Below is an excerpt from the Ethics Board’s May 8, 2018 meeting minutes which we made blue to distinguish it and bold to highlight the pertinent facts:

MINUTESTown
> of Greenburgh Board of EthicsTuesday,
> May 8, 2018 6:30 p.m.Town
> Hall, Steven Belasco Conference Room
>
>
> Board
> Members Present:
> Doris Friedman, Esq.; Carol Sarcinella, EdD; Blase Spinozzi,
> Craig Zumsteg.
>
> Volunteer
> Counsel.
> Joseph Malara, Esq.
>
> Also
> present:
> Ken Jones and Francis Sheehan
>
>
> Meeting
> was convened at 6:38 p.m. A quorum of the Board of Ethics
> was present.Adopted the Agenda.Adopted the Minutes of the March 20, 2018,
> meeting.The Chair Doris Friedman, Esq. thanked Carol
> Sarcinella for filling in during her absence.Correspondence. The e-mail received from the Town
> Clerk, Judith A. Beville and the response were
> noted.The Advisory Opinion regarding David Cannon’s
> request will be discussed at the next meeting.Ms. Friedman will write to Steve Grant inviting
> him to the next meeting of the Board of Ethics.Financial Disclosure. Blase Spinozzi reported that
> David Fried, Esq. stated as of May 2, fifty-nine percent of
> the employees and twenty-eight percent of Boards and
> Committees were in compliance returning disclosure
> formsEthics Training. Blase Spinozzi said David Fried
> will discuss with the Town Board the possibility and date
> for the ethics training presentation. Ken Jones
> made an informal request for advice on how to proceed in
> future decisions involving his position on the Town Board,
> his liaison with the Greenburgh Housing Authority for the
> Town Board, and the legal firm he serves “of counsel.”
> The Board of Ethics recommended that he recuse himself from
> any decisions involving his firm and the
> Town.

This clearly shows that Mr Sheehan's assertion was accurate and Councilman Jones is not telling the truth. The legal firm he is referring to is Bozeman Law firm (see pic below), which we just captured Sunday from their website (https://www.bozemanlawfirm.com/profiles.htm). 

Mr Jones could argue that he left his firm in the Spring 2019, a few weeks  prior to the vote in question and that technically his May 2019 vote was not barred by the Town Ethics Ruling. Unfortunately, the Town Ethics Code does not directly address a “cooling off” for private sector matters. However, the NY State Joint Commission on Public Ethics “plain language guide”  is very clear with its “reverse two-year bar” for public officials in dealing with matters that involved a former private sector employer. Again, technically, the NYS employees ethics rules might not bind town employees, but that is a very weak “ethical” position for Mr Jones to take. Perhaps he subscribes to Mr Feiner's methodology to ignore any laws or standards he doesn't like? By the way, Mr Feiner appoints all Ethics Board members which gets ratified by his Board.

Below is an excerpt from of the NYSJC Public Ethics rule. We made it blue to distinguish it and bold to highlight the pertinent facts:

REVERSE TWO-YEAR BAR
If you are entering State service from the private sector, the “reverse two-year bar” may, depending on the circumstances, require you to recuse from matters directly involving your former private sector employer for a two- year “cooling off” period.
The Commission interpreted Public Officers Law § 74 to contain this “reverse two-year bar” in Advisory Opinion Nos. 98-09 and 07-04.
In practice, the “reverse two-year bar” prevents the appearance that you, in performing your State duties, may give preferential treatment to, or be unduly influenced by, your former private sector employer.

If your Ethics Officer or JCOPE determines that recusal is appropriate, it runs for two years from the date that you terminated employment with the private sector employer. 
Link:

https://jcope.ny.gov/system/files/documents/2018/10/jcope-plain-language-guide-ethics-law-91018.pdf

Watching the Town Board meeting shows just how dysfunctional this Board has become. Mr Jones made a motion for the Board to vote on the proposal and it was seconded by newly appointed Councilwoman Hendrikx. Mr Sheehan said, we believe correctly, that any Board member can move to hold-over any item without cause and he was doing so. Mr Jones objected. They argued some more and finally Town Attorney Tim Lewis, referred to as the Board's Parliamentarian, suggested suspending the rules -- basically to thwart Councilman Sheehan's request to pull the resolution -- and allow the vote that Councilman Jones wanted. Not only can you not vote to suspend your rules so you can have a favored or controlled outcome, but doing so may violate the Town charter. So after they voted to suspend the rules (Yes vote by Hendrickx, Jones, Feiner) Juettner abstained saying they've never done this before, and Sheehan voted no, they then voted for the the original resolution with the same comments and counts. Suspending or changing the rules to control the outcome is like passing a law to say murder is not illegal so you can't be found guilty of murder after you've killed someone. 

What probably most important here is that Mr Jones worked for Bozeman as an attorney while he was a Town Councilman and the GHA liaison. Bozeman represents Georgica Green Ventures which is comprised of the Housing Authority and the developer. Ken Jones should have recused himself because his employer was involved with the Town whether directly or indirectly. Mr Feiner should have removed Mr Jones as the GHA liaison due to the conflict of interest and Town Attorney Tim Lewis should have also asked Ken Jones to step down as liaison for the same reason. But this is “Bizarro Greenburgh” where rules apply to others, not the elite few in Mr Feiner’s inner circle. And, with the forcing of the suspension of rules to make a decision go the way he wanted, Mr Jones has placed the Town in another risky, contentious and possibly criminal position with Ms Hendrickx, Mr Feiner and Mr Lewis.

There are three candidates running for two Board seats in the Democratic Primary on June 25th. Those Board candidates are incumbent Ken Jones(D) seeking re-election, Eric Zinger(D) and Gina Jackson(D) vying for Mr Jones’ and Kevin Morgan’s seat. There are two candidates running for Supervisor position in the general election on November 5th. Lucas Cioffi(IND) is running against incumbent Mr Feiner (D) for the Supervisor's position. We know Mr Zinger and Mr Cioffi and are hoping to sit down with Ms Jackson soon and invite all the candidates to submit position papers to us for publication. Without position papers we believe any of the new candidates would be a breath of fresh air, a welcome change and long overdue. It’s the only way we can begin to get A Better Greenburgh.