Update from Mount Vernon Mayor, Richard Thomas.

Dear Mount Vernon: Yesterday, an email circulated by Legislator Lyndon Williams went out regarding Memorial Field. While I have not had the chance to discuss and update Legislator Williams on the project, we accept full responsibility for not hitting Monday's target. In the interim, here is the correspondence confirming our request for the Council and Comptroller to act on funding the necessary work to move the clean-up process further along. A letter from the Department of Public Works is also available here which details the capacity hurdles they are facing. Despite my requests for special meetings, the City Council chose to not make themselves available, and the Comptroller simply did not show up in City Hall. As of 9:45 AM the Comptroller's Office was literally closed!!! Lights off, doors locked despite City Hall opening at 8:30 AM. How can we expect to work with another elected official's office that is closed during business hours without notice or explanation? The issue of funding is nothing new and has been at the root of the operational paralysis stopping vital services since I became Mayor. Understand that I have repeatedly submitted cost-efficient requests to properly fund the Memorial Field clean up project, along with other major priorities, to the City Council and Comptroller in various forms and letters over the past three years - much of which is available here. Most recently I provided a detailed warning on the consequences an unfunded budget would mean to Mount Vernon, specifically Memorial Field, in my March 4th letter, where I extended "Another Budget Olive Branch" to fund the future of our beloved City. This letter included the request for Memorial Field funding, was re-submitted at least five times since then, and a Court verbally ordered the Council and Comptroller to act on this matter - which they did not. The bottom line is I believe with the right funding in place we can achieve the target dates ahead on Memorial Field, Clean Water Act compliance, DPW Yard repairs, and more. I look forward to collaborating with the County, City Council, Comptroller, and the people of Mount Vernon on revitalizing Memorial Field. The clock is ticking. The time is now to move forward! Sincerely, Mayor Rich Thomas Mayor Thomas Calls for Special Memorial Field City Council Meeting MOUNT VERNON - Mayor Richard Thomas is calling for a special meeting on Memorial Field for Friday morning. The purpose of the Special City Council meeting is to pass a resolution affirming the execution of a professional services contract for Cornerstone PLLC to perform the "Preparation of Technical Specifications and Bid Documents Guiding the Remediation of Memorial Field." This meeting is necessary because the Department of Public Works must comply with mandates ordered by the state Department of Environmental Conservation. The Department of Public Works does not have enough capacity to complete the necessary administrative engineering work in-house to advance the clean-up of Memorial Field.   MOUNT VERNON COMPTROLLER SEIZES SOLE CONTROL   OVER CITY FINANCES WITH NO OVERSIGHT   Mayor Richard Thomas left with Deputy Corporation Counsel Brian Johnson on May 16, 2019   MOUNT VERNON - Comptroller Deborah Reynolds has unilaterally removed Mayor Richard Thomas and the City Council President from the City's bank-account signature card in violation of a court order and the City Charter.   On Thursday Mayor Thomas and other City officials presented documents showing that Comptroller Reynolds is now the sole signatory on the City's banking signature cards. Under the new signature card, if Comptroller Reynolds were to become incapacitated or unable to fulfill her duties, there is no one empowered to officially sign the City's checks.   "She now has sole control of the City finances without any oversight from the City Council or the Mayor," said Brian Johnson, deputy corporation counsel. "That means she can (do), and she has been doing, anything that she wants. She pays whomever she wants without City Council or mayoral approval, when ever she wants." NOW SHE IS ACCOUNTABLE TO NOBODY According to the City Charter, Article 65: "The Mayor shall, on behalf of and in the name of the City of Mount Vernon, countersign all checks issued by the Comptroller, except checks issued to pay the principal of bonds, interest thereon, coupons thereof, and for compensation of employees of the Department of Public Works, and execute all deeds and contracts made by the City and shall cause to be affixed thereto the City seal." Link to the Mount Vernon City Charter Article 65: https://ecode360.com/13909278 Mayor Thomas called Comptroller Reynolds' removal of his signature authority another example of her efforts to obstruct his administration. "There's been court order, after court order, after court order instructing the City Council and the Comptroller to stop the obstruction and start serving the people of Mount Vernon," Mayor Thomas said Thursday. "In this very case, the City Comptroller unilaterally acted behind my back in defiance of multiple court orders not to obstruct or infringe upon executive authority." In response to the Comptroller's latest action, Mayor Thomas is calling for a special meeting on Friday with the City Council. He will also appeal to the state Supreme Court and ask it to enforce a court decision ordering the Comptroller to refrain from blocking the Mayor's access to bank records. Oversight of the Comptroller's actions has become more urgent since the Mount Vernon school district filed a $31 million lawsuit against the Comptroller, accusing her of withholding taxes she has collected on the district's behalf. In addition to the missing school taxes, Comptroller Reynolds' nonpayment of bills to City vendors led to a disruption of garbage collection earlier this year, as well as shortages of postage in City Hall, toilet paper in senior centers and plants for spring plantings in public parks. Comptroller Reynolds is an elected official and she cannot be fired by Mayor Thomas, who has repeatedly called on Gov. Andrew Cuomo and other state officials to begin proceedings that would remove the Comptroller from office.