By:Jeff Lipton
Trustees Martin Oliner, Joel Mael and Simon Felder ganged up on the mayor at the May 12 meeting. Only last week, Felder had backed out of challenging Levenbrown for the post to avoid driving a wedge in the community, he said.
Oliner, who backed Felder for mayor, led the verbal assault on Levenbrown, accusing him several times of micromanaging village government and causing longtime village employees to become disgruntled and leave. He added that under Levenbrown, village government has been run unprofessionally.
Oliner read a letter from Village Administrator Peter Overs, who indicated that he could not work in the Levenbrown administration and would retire July 1 if an agreement could not be worked out.
In the letter, Overs said that Levenbrown has been aware of his retirement date for three months and has said nothing to me other than Ôgood luck- and Ôyou earned it.-
If I were to continue under the current circumstances, I would lose not only the respect of all the residents, but also my self-respect, Overs said in the letter. Under the current reign of Mayor Levenbrown, I have not been permitted to fully function as village administrator. ... I cannot and will not continue under his micromanagement style of administration.
Oliner said Levenbrown-s management style forced deputy administrator Michael Perone to leave last year, and he did not want the same thing to happen to Overs, 55, who has worked as the village administrator for 35 years and is eligible for retirement next month.
Levenbrown, who looked flabbergasted during the attacks at the meeting, said he felt blindsided by them and by the letter. This certainly comes as a surprise to me, he said. I am insulted and I am hurt that this has come up in public this way.
Levenbrown sternly told Oliner that the matter should not be discussed in public, and that he would meet with Overs to iron out any problems. He described Overs as one of the best administrators in the state, and said he would do anything he can to prevent him from leaving.
But Oliner insisted that Levenbrown discuss what he plans to do about Overs with the board and in public.
Overs, who appeared embarrassed and bowed his head while Oliner read his letter, later said that he felt extremely uncomfortable with the board arguing in public about him. It should not be about me, he said. I feel it should be about the position [of village administrator].
In a statement faxed to the Herald last Friday, Overs said the matter had been resolved, and that he would continue to serve in 2004-05. While it is true that Mayor Levenbrown and I have had some difficulties concerning management styles, I am pleased to announce that all matters have been addressed to everyone-s satisfaction and that I will be continuing to serve as village administrator for the next year, Overs said in the statement.
As I am presently eligible to retire, he went on, my continued service will be decided on a year-to-year basis, however, I look forward to working closely with Mayor Levenbrown and the Board of Trustees in an effort to continue to provide the best possible service to our residents, he added.
During the May 12 meeting, Mael said he was embarrassed and humiliated by a letter sent by the mayor to Cameron Engineering about a construction job in the village. Mael said the mayor treated Cameron, which has been working with the village since 1985, in an extremely unprofessional manner with regard to the cost of the construction job, squeezing the company for a lower price. It-s an unacceptable practice, in my mind, Mael said.
Levenbrown insisted that a public meeting was not the appropriate place for the barrage of complaints against him.
We-re not here about you, Mr. Mayor, Oliner responded. We-re talking about Mr. Overs.
Felder added, We-re not trying to diminish the importance of the office of mayor. We want to bring back the integrity to the office of mayor.
Margaret Carpenter, who recently announced that she would not seek re-election as trustee, stayed out of the fray for the most part and asked the board only to pray for a solution to the disagreements.
A resident of the village for about 10 years said at the meeting that during the last two years he has seen a dysfunctional board at work.
Overs- letter was brought to the attention of the board in executive session before the meeting. Oliner said he thought it should be read at the meeting to show how serious Overs was about leaving and that he could not work with the mayor.
During an awkward moment after the board emerged from executive session, Felder moved into the mayor-s chair, and when Levenbrown returned, Felder kept him waiting for more than a minute in back of the seat.
During one point in the meeting, Felder leaned over to ask the mayor a question, and Levenbrown told him to get away. What you did here tonight was nasty, Levenbrown was heard telling Felder.
The Board of Governors of the Lawrence Association voted 18-to-4 on May 6 to endorse Levenbrown for mayor in preparation for the June 15 elections. The association-s Nominations Committee had earlier recommended an endorsement of Felder for the post, but the recommendation was rejected by the the group-s Board of Governors at a March 17 meeting.
The original Nominations Committee recommendation for Felder was first revealed in a Feb. 20 summary report of the committee, which was mailed to all Lawrence residents in the association-s newsletter and sparked controversy because it warned that certain village employees would leave if Levenbrown were re-elected.
In 2002 the association endorsed Felder for mayor, but he backed out at the 11th hour, which allowed Levenbrown to run unopposed. Felder said he also pulled out of this year-s race to keep peace and harmony in the village in an election that would have divided the community.
Following last week-s meeting, Lawrence Association President Rabbi Rafael Saffra said the Nominations Committee, which endorsed Felder, has been completely vindicated and validated as to their recommendation. The committee took a lot of criticism from all sides. In retrospect, the committee did the right thing in what they felt was in the best interest for all in the village.
Oliner said that Levenbrown tries his best for the village and is a dedicated public servant who in his zest for doing things sometimes oversteps the boundaries of village administration.
Levenbrown said that each mayor has a different management style, and his is a hands-on style. He added that Overs- discontent was never discussed before the meeting. He said he became aware of Overs- letter just moments before the meeting. He said Perone left after suffering medical problems, and was granted a disability retirement. Perone did not return phone calls.
Levenbrown said later that after the meeting, the board, Overs and he came to a meeting of the minds and worked out their differences. Everything is now more peaceful than ever before, Levenbrown said.
Sometimes after a violent thunderstorm you have a rainbow, he added. That is exactly what has happened here.
