GENERAL MUNICIPAL LAW 18-803 FULL DISCLOSURE STATEMENT OF MAYOR ANDREW HARDWICK IN CONNECTION WITH THE PROPOSED SETTLEMENT OF THE ABOVE CAPTIONED FEDERAL RACKETEERING ACTION AGAINST THE INDIVIDUAL DEFENDANTS AND THE INCORPORATED VILLAGE OF FREEPORT:
I am hereby voting as Mayor of the Incorporated Village of Freeport to support the attached resolution to settle the above captioned cases currently pending in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. In those actions, it is alleged that certain individuals and government officials engaged in a pattern of behavior (alleged and denominated as Racketeering under Federal Law) that was designed to unlawfully deprive the Plaintiffs of their property.
The facts underlying the current lawsuits began under the previous (Glacken) Administration; William Glacken and his brother-in-law “Joe” Edwards, who was the Freeport Village Attorney, are the primary targets of the lawsuits. Neither I nor any other member of my Administration has any involvement or personal interest in the initiation and/or outcome of the lawsuits, pecuniary or otherwise. However, the Plaintiff, Gary Melius, is an individual who is personally known to me. Due to that familiarity, I would prefer to abstain from voting on this matter. The reason I must vote is that I have a duty as Mayor to act in the best interests of the Village. And, because the individuals who are alleged to be responsible for getting Freeport into this morass and/or those whose responsibility it is to review the proposed settlement and determine what is in the best interest of the Village have either 1) refused to address the Board of Trustees when requested to do so; or 2) avoided voting “FOR” or “AGAINST” by citing hypothetical conflicts of interest when requested to carry out their duty as Village Trustees.
As a result of the refusals to vote, attending their abstentions, the Board does not have the necessary votes for or against the resolution to move it forward. Accordingly, without my vote, there can be no settlement and the Village would then be left exposed to a potential jury verdict that would lead to burdensome taxes or, in the worst case, a potential municipal bankruptcy.
This settlement has been recommended by the Village’s Risk Manager and all of the attorneys representing the Incorporated Village of Freeport. However, the attorneys representing the Glacken Administration Defendants have not yet joined in the current settlement and have rejected all prior offers. The taxpayers of Freeport did nothing wrong, period! It is the individual members of the prior administration who are personally accused of alleged egregious misconduct.
Unfortunately, it is the Village that will have to pay millions of dollars above the settlement amount in legal fees and expenses in the event the Plaintiff prevails at trial. In fact, it is estimated that the Village’s legal defense will cost millions of dollars -- over and above what has already been spent. We cannot take that chance, as those additional millions would require a mandatory tax increase. As your Mayor, I cannot and will not gamble with the taxpayers’ money.
Although I am addressing this disclosure directly to all Village Residents, I am formally directing it to the Board of Trustees as the governing body of the Village of Freeport pursuant to General Municipal Law, Article 18, Section 803. It is being made a part of the record herein in order that any resident or other interested person can easily review and, hopefully, understand it. Once the signing is complete, I intend to hold a public meeting to lay the matter out in full.