Environmental Commission Appointment 'Reeks of Politics,' Committeeman Says

The resignation of Michael Furci from the Environmental Commission and the subsequent appointment of Patricia Sullivan to fill Furci's unexpired term, discussed at Tuesday's Springfield Township Committee meeting, drew the ire of Committeeman Ziad Andrew Shehady who said the situation "reeks of politics."

Shehady said while Furci emailed three committee members to announce his resignation, effective Sept. 16, others were not aware of it until Monday, depriving them ample time to come up with a replacement. 

Shehady suggested that there was a violation of the Open Public Meetings Act, not because the email was sent only to certain committee members, but because when the agenda was put together Monday, he believed it had already been decided that Sullivan would be nominated and appointed. 

Committee members told Shehady that Sullivan, a nurse, had been active on the flood mitigation committeee and had brought to light a lot of issues that led to her being suggested for the position by the Environmental Commission. 

Councilman David Barnett told Shehady he was "reading a lot into this that is not there."

Shehady said that Mayor David Amlen's message in 'The Local Source' in which he stated there was a spirit of unity among the committee was "a farce" and again questioned Amlen regarding the ad hoc committee he put together to develop a timeline for when information about a possibly contaminated piece of public property was known and by whom. 

"We started this year with a political witch hunt," Shehady said, "and there's so far there's been no factual basis or merit for this investigation nor will there be or has there been any findings of wrong doing."

Shehady said he believes that the results of the investigation will be revealed around election time, a move he called "political gamemanship." 

Springfield resident and Republican Union County Freeholder candidate Marc Krauss also asked where things stood with the committee and was told that members had had difficulty finding a time to meet.

Amlen said he was compelled to form the committee as a result of public outcry to put rumors to rest regarding the Board of Education property that is comprised of approximately nine acres near the intersection of Tree Top Drive and Skylark Road.

Krauss also suggested it was a conflict of interest to have Barnett, chairman of the Springfield Democratic Party, serve on the committee.

Krauss also asked Committeewoman Margaret Bandrowski if she were satisfied with the service being provided by the Madison Health Department. During his time on the committee Krauss had been instrumental in entering into the agreement in order to save the Township $30,000 annually. Bandrowski said both the Township and the Madison Health Department were "adjusting their expectations." Krauss said that he'd never seen so much public health information available since the move was made, adding, "overall, that's a good deal."

The Township Committee will meet next at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 22 at the Municipal Building.