Questions surround Lawrence village payments

In attempt to gain information concerning payments to two people who worked for the Village of Lawrence that were made by Mayor Martin Oliner without the board’s approval the trustees voted at the Dec. 15 board meeting 3-1-1 to draft a letter that could be sent to the state comptroller’s office.

Deputy Mayor Joel Mael and trustees Edward I. Klar and Michael Fragin voted yes to draft the letter; trustee C. Simon Felder voted no and Oliner abstained.

Mael, who said, he had a “fiduciary responsibility” as a board member to call this to someone’s attention, requested a letter be written by Village Attorney Tom Levin that would outline the board members’ concerns. A letter is planned to be drafted and then circulated to the trustees. Another board vote would need to be taken to send the letter. The board can send a complaint to the comptroller’s office after approving a resolution to do so, or individual trustees can forward a letter concerning a possible impropriety, said Kate Gurnett of the state comptroller’s office.

“Over the last year there have been some payments, trustees have asked questions, but there has not been sufficient responses to those questions,” Mael said. “I don’t know if the payments are okay, not okay or fall into a gray area.”

Mael didn’t say how many payments were made and to how many employees. But it was made public by Oliner that there were four payments the board didn’t approve to a pair of individuals he called “independent contractors” and he cut checks for a total of nearly $5,000 for those two people that hadn’t been paid after working a few weeks for the village, earlier this year. One was performing accounting duties and another was functioning as a temporary secretary, Oliner said.

However, it was not only what Mael introduced, but how it was presented at the end of a nearly two and a half hour meeting that drew the ire of his fellow board members, especially Oliner.

“You have created immense dispersions on this board, on me, that are arrogant, sick, deceptive, foolhardy and irresponsible,” Oliner said.