SCHENECTADY — The city council’s attempt to appoint former Deputy Corporation Counsel Christopher Marney to the city’s ethics board hit a roadblock for the second time during Monday night’s meeting. However, City Council President Marion Porterfield remains undeterred and plans to propose Marney’s name for the board for a third time.
At the council’s meeting on Feb. 12, City Councilwoman Doreen Ditoro called for a roll call vote on Marney’s nomination. Unfortunately, the motion fell flat as no other board member seconded her proposal.
Porterfield, who initially recommended Marney for the ethics board, put forth his nomination for a second time. The board voted 3-2 in favor of his appointment on Monday evening, falling one vote short of the required four-vote council majority. City Councilmembers Joseph Mancini and Damonni Farley were absent from the meeting.
Porterfield, along with City Councilmembers Carl Williams and John Mootooveren, supported the resolution, while City Councilmembers Carmel Patrick and Ditoro opposed the nomination.
Following Monday’s meeting, Porterfield expressed her intention to propose Marney’s nomination for a third time to the full council.
“I’m definitely going to bring it back again,” she affirmed. “We had two people absent tonight, so absolutely I’m going to bring it back.”
Marney served in the city’s corporation counsel office from December 2021 to January 2024. He left the office amid staffing changes that led to Schenectady Mayor Gary McCarthy replacing former Corporation Counsel Andrew Koldin with Maxine Barasch.
After Marney’s initial nomination to the ethics board, McCarthy hinted at the possibility of vetoing Marney’s appointment if approved by the council.
Patrick expressed on Tuesday that Marney’s recent role with the city influenced her decision to oppose the nomination.
“It just seemed to be that having just left his employment with the city that it was still a little too soon for me to consider him for the ethics committee,” Patrick explained.
The ethics board currently comprises four members, with chair Father Dominic Isopo unable to serve while he recovers from knee surgery. The ethics panel had to cancel its scheduled Feb. 1 meeting due to the lack of a quorum.
The ethics board’s next meeting is scheduled for Thursday evening.
“I think he’s a worthwhile candidate, and frankly, the board needs to be fully composed,” Porterfield said of Marney. “Right now, one of the people is going to be out with indefinite sick time, so having three people means that every person there has to absolutely have the same decision, because 2-1 will not pass anything because the body is constituted of five people.”
Williams pointed out during Monday’s meeting that Marney is willing to serve on a board at a time when the city is struggling to fully staff its government committees.
Monday’s meeting saw the council approve the nomination of Anthony Fowler to the city’s Human Rights Commission.
“I think it is a poor show of sound judgment to refuse an individual who is volunteering to assist in filling a vacancy, especially when with committees and boards in our city we’ve highlighted that participation is an ongoing challenge,” Williams said of Marney during the meeting.
The ethics board is currently reviewing a complaint filed by Williams in December against former Councilman John Polimeni. The complaint alleges that Polimeni had been residing in Rotterdam since last spring while he served on the Schenectady council.
The ethics board ruled on two complaints made against Farley in 2023, with the councilman cleared of two complaints. The first was brought by Polimeni pertaining to Farley’s employment contracts with the Schenectady City School District and unpaid state income taxes. A second complaint was subsequently brought by Schenectady Republican Party head Tom Kennedy (and subsequently took up by Schenectady Police Lt. Mike Dalton) regarding calls that Farley made to a county dispatcher and Dalton in which Farley sought the return of a towed vehicle belonging to a friend.
“I think it’s a conflict of interest,” Ditoro said of Marney following Monday’s meeting. “He worked here in the corporation counsel office and knowing things that other people might not know and why the ethics complaints are out there. I just think it’s a conflict of interest, personally.”
I disagree with the council’s decision.
I disagree with the council’s decision to deny Marney’s nomination. She would have been a valuable addition to the Ethics Board.
Disagree with the council’s decision. Marney would have brought a fresh perspective to the Ethics Board.