Yorktown Town Board Special Meeting: Jan 31, 2024 – Supervisor Vacancy & Deputy Compensation
Yorktown Town Board Special Meeting – January 31, 2024
The Yorktown Town Board held a special meeting on January 31, 2024, to address two main items: authorizing a special election to fill the vacant Town Supervisor position and approving compensation for Deputy Town Supervisor Councilman Edward Lachterman. The meeting included public comments and board discussion on election logistics, campaign signs, and Lachterman's commitment to the role.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Mark Lieberman (Wall Street resident): Asked why the special election (April 16) was not combined with the April 2 presidential primary, and whether the town or county board of elections would manage it. Town Clerk Diana Quast responded that state law prohibits combining the two and that the Westchester County Board of Elections will run the special election.
- Matt Tanzman (resident): Proposed a voluntary, bipartisan agreement to limit the number and size of campaign signs, arguing that funds would be better spent on debates and community forums. He emphasized it was a modest, non-partisan suggestion and not a legal mandate.
- Jake Copstein (resident): Disagreed, stating that during a special election, lawn signs help publicize an unfamiliar election date; he saw no problem with limited signs on private property.
- John McMullen (45-year resident): Clarified that sign placement on private property is a free speech issue, but on street corners or in malls is not; he agreed with Councilwoman Howitt's earlier point about free speech.
- Tony (resident, last name not given): Asked about mail-in ballots; Diana Quast later confirmed the Board of Elections will allow absentee and early-vote-by-mail ballots.
- Cindy Secor Smith (resident): Expressed confidence in Lachterman’s dedication, recounting that he personally returned her call on a Sunday when he was busy.
Discussion Items
- Special Election Authorized: The board discussed the timing of the April 16, 2024 special election for the unexpired supervisor term (vacated by the late Thomas P. Diana). Deputy Town Attorney David Chen explained that the town’s local law (passed via referendum ~10 years ago) and state early-voting mandates (9 days) dictated the date. The election will be administered by the Westchester County Board of Elections.
- Sign Law Discussion: Several board members and residents debated lawn sign regulations. Acting Supervisor Lachterman and Councilwoman Howitt noted the First Amendment right to place signs on private property, though they personally found excessive signs cluttered. Councilman Murphy mentioned he would consider a law change only after a full public hearing.
- Deputy Supervisor Compensation: The board considered a resolution authorizing Councilman Edward Lachterman (already Deputy Supervisor) to receive an annual stipend of $111,390 (the difference between supervisor and councilperson salaries), retroactive to January 8, 2024, until the vacancy is filled by election or appointment. His council salary of $25,080 remains separate.
- Public comment: Mark Lieberman asked whether Lachterman would commit full-time. Councilwoman Howitt and Councilman Murphy stated they had verified his full commitment; Lachterman later detailed that he had resigned from several board positions and his businesses are on autopilot or managed by his wife, allowing him to dedicate 40–60 hours per week.
- Lachterman’s Remarks: After the vote, Lachterman thanked the board, noted he had surgery scheduled for the next day (disk replacement), and clarified that his delay in declaring candidacy was due to ensuring his availability. He also addressed succession: if he were unable to perform duties, the law allows the town board to appoint a deputy if the supervisor fails to do so within five days.
Key Outcomes
- Resolution 1 – Special Election: Unanimously approved (all ayes). The special election will be held on April 16, 2024, to fill the vacant Town Supervisor seat, with early voting (9 days) and absentee/mail-in ballots available.
- Resolution 2 – Deputy Supervisor Compensation: Approved with all ayes (one board member recused themselves from the vote; identity not specified). Councilman Edward Lachterman will receive an additional $111,390 per annum from January 8, 2024, until the supervisor vacancy is filled.
- Next Steps: The Town Clerk will coordinate with the Westchester County Board of Elections for the special election. The board may schedule additional meetings to address pending legislation and liaisons.
Meeting Transcript
Good afternoon all, and uh thank you for joining us for this special meeting of January 31st, 2024. We please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. Mr. Copstein, could you lead us? And through the Republic, we could stand one nation on the God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. And if we could remain standing for a moment of silence, is remember uh all of those that serve us, uh first responders, military, and those that uh fight for our freedoms, and we remember that freedom is not free, and there is a price to pay for democracy. Amen. Thank you. Good evening, Diana Quas, Town Clerk. Acting supervisor Ed Lacterman. Sergio Esposito, Councilman. Councilwoman Luciana Howitt. Patrick Murphy, Councilman. David Chen from Law Firm Bleak we played in Schmidt. I'm sitting in for Adam Rodriguez as the town attorney tonight. Thank you. Uh so there are some uh resolutions that we wanted to discuss. Uh David, could you uh lead us off on the first resolution? Yes, thank you very much. Good evening. Um the first resolution that's going to be addressed is a resolution to all it's item five in the agenda, it's to authorize a special election to be held on April 16th, 2024 to fill the vacancy for the unexpired term of town supervisor. Uh I won't read the uh all the words of the uh resolution, it's there in the agenda, but I just wanted to uh give a little bit of background on the resolution and and and the particularly the timing. Um as many will remember, about 10 years ago, this town passed a local law via referendum setting forth the procedure for filling vacancies uh in elected offices. Uh this uh this law, which is uh codified as section 65-9 method of filling filling vacancy allows for the appointment uh of a replacement or either a special election or uh filling via general election, whichever of those two latter uh methods will fill the vacancy uh faster, the specific languages will be filled in the shortest space of time reasonably possible. My understanding is that uh an appointment is not fit forthcoming, and that is why uh there has been a resolution to call uh this special election that fulfills the intent of the referendum in town law to fill this vacancy in the shortest possible time. Uh I should note uh also by way of background this this uh law predated the relatively new New York state law uh which uh mandates a certain period of early voting. Um so if to extend there's questions about some of the the the exact timing why we why we've landed on April this the 16th, uh that law is also at play. We have to have it. I believe it's nine days of of early voting uh per state law. So it's those two uh the confluence of those two laws are local uh town law and then the state law uh are are why we've uh arrived on the particular date that we have thank you, David. Any uh questions from the board? No. Okay. Um for this uh uh I will open for any uh public comment if anyone would like to talk about it. Hi Mark Lieberman, Wall Street. Uh so there's a uh presidential primary on April 2nd, uh, which people will be voting in the primary. And so my question is why are you not doing it to uh coincide with that event? And since you're not doing it to coincide with that event, is the town paying extra for that? And is the town managing the election, or is the board of elections managing the election? Thank you. We'll give this over to our town clerk who is our elections officer. The um Westchester County Board of Elections will be running the election, the special election for the town on April 16th, and under state law, we're not allowed to combine that with a presidential primary. Thanks, Diane. Thank you. Is there anyone else? I don't know if these are gonna give me feedback. Um just a quick comment. Um one I I wish there was a better time that you guys could have held this that would have encouraged more um town people to be here. Um but I'm really want to just make a real modest proposal that I'll hope that we at least consider. I think that one of the biggest complaints that we have in any election season is the silliness of it.
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