Chairman’s Comments

Underscore Divisions On Council

By Steve Bigham

Disagreements among Legislative Council members continued last week when Chairman Pierre Rochman suggested certain proposed town ordinances were not being handled properly.

At the July 19 meeting, Mr Rochman voiced his displeasure with the lack of progress made by the ordinance committee in the creation of ordinances. In his opinion, the sub-committee is circumventing the council’s authority by choosing on its own not to act on certain proposed laws.

“The ordinance committee has just been deciding, ‘no, we’re not ready to deal with this or that.’ I think the Legislative Council needs to make that decision, not the committee,” Mr Rochman said.

Ordinance Committee Chairman Will Rodgers, along with fellow council members Tim Holian and John Kortze, took a different view of the issue.

“My position is the ordinance committee reports back at council meetings on what has transpired. The full council is always appraised of our status on the ordinances,” Mr Rodgers said. “To my way of thinking, you give the report and if someone has a problem, they say it.”

Mr Rochman said future council agendas would include individual ordinances for discussion.

Some council members admitted they were surprised by Mr Rochman’s remarks on the subject last week. Council member Joe Borst said he thinks the current ordinance committee has done an excellent job and felt Mr Rochman’s comment came from “left field.”

“The Legislative Council has to be a reactionary board, and Pierre doesn’t always see it that way,” Mr Borst said.

Mr Rodgers said Mr Rochman brought up the issue without discussing it with members beforehand.

“Pierre thinks he is in step with the Legislative Council and truthfully, it comes as a shock to him when he’s not,” Mr Rodgers said.

But Melissa Pilchard, who was not present at last week’s meeting, says she is angered at the way some council members have been ganging up against Mr Rochman. She criticized the council for accomplishing very little in its eight months, pointing to both the ordinances and Fairfield Hills.

“Of the 11 councils I have served on, this one is doing the least, but it’s not due to Pierre. He is working hard to try to get things done. The fault lies elsewhere,” she said Monday.