L.G. trustees spar over appointing Mayor Perry as events director

LAKE GEORGE | A recent split vote by the Lake George Village Board on a resolution that appointed Mayor Ray Perry as the local government's Director of Special Events is likely to be rescinded, Perry said in a recent interview, because a local law prohibits a village employee from holding two salaried village positions simultaneously. He said the topic of filling the special events post is likely to be discussed at a special joint village/town board meeting set for 4 p.m. Thursday Jan. 9 at the Lake George Town Hall. Lengthy, contentious discussion about appointing Mayor Perry to take on the additional village post occurred at the Dec. 16 village board meeting, and the dispute concluded with board members Joe Mastrodomenico and Jose Filomeno voting in favor of the proposal and board members Alyson Miller and John Root voting against the appointment. Perry, however, cast the pivotal vote to appoint himself — but the resolution is now in limbo. Before the vote, Miller and Root said they felt that the dual responsibilities of managing both the operations of the village plus planning and executing local special events were too much for one person to accomplish effectively. "The mayor should be focusing on running the government," Miller said. Root and Miller said they supported the idea of appointing a committee to take on the duties of event planning and execution. Filomeno agreed with this concept for the event-planning aspect, because it would result in an array of ideas and opinions — but he added that having one person to spearhead the events' coordination was optimal. Mastrodomenico said Perry had the experience to take on the position, as he already had been planning local events since becoming Mayor in April 2023. Blais, who held the position of village mayor for 52 years, retired in spring 2023 and subsequently was appointed Director of Special Events for an annual salary of $35,000. Root noted that while Blais was the village mayor, he planned and executed special events on a volunteer basis and wasn't paid any additional stipend beyond his $40,000 annual salary. He noted that Perry was seeking to be paid $35,000 on top of the present mayoral annual salary of $50,000, and the resulting $85,000 salary to do the work accomplished by Blais for $40,000 was a pay hike that would dismay taxpayers. Filomeno contended that it would be unlikely for anyone with appropriate qualifications to take on the job of events director at a salary of $35,000 and that $85,000 was reasonable compensation for the work. Miller said that last spring, the board members had agreed that the posts of mayor and special events should be separate. Perry disagreed. He responded that the board had always intended to appoint him to the events post. Throughout the discussion, Perry contended that he had the experience and qualifications to take on the events director post. He noted that he already planned and instituted the public skating rink on Beach Road and arranged to have the extensive lighting displays once used in the Capital Holiday Lights attraction relocated to Lake George. Perry also said that various area officials including Warren County Tourism Director Heather Bagshaw wanted him to take on the job. Filomeno said that appointing Perry to a one-year term was a good idea, as the board could evaluate next fall whether Perry had been successful in both positions. Breaking with longstanding tradition, Village Clerk Julie Allen gave her opinion that Perry should take on the job. In addition to saying that he he had the appropriate experience, she said there was no space at the village hall to accommodate another employee, the village's phone system couldn't handle another extension, and a new hire would require providing employee benefits. At the conclusion of the lengthy discussion, the village trustees cast their votes — two in favor of Perry taking on the position, two against, but Perry cast the tie-breaker. After the vote, questions arose about what the trustees had actually voted on, as there was no formal resolution citing specifics of pay nor the length of the term. About a week after the meeting, Perry said the decision would be rescinded, and the village board would likely be dealing with this issue in mid-January. Meanwhile, several community members raised questions about whether it was a breach of ethics for Perry to vote on taking on the additional post, as his total income from the village would increase by $35,000. Warren County has a Code of Ethics that prohibits its officials from voting on matters that would benefit them financially, and the code requires them to recuse themselves from such votes. As of Jan. 3, it was unclear whether Lake George Village has such local ordinances concerning ethical conduct.

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L.G. trustees spar over appointing Mayor Perry as events director

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