By Bruce Markovich

Lansford Council President

The recent editorial composed and written by Bruce Frassinelli, in regards to the actions taken by Lansford Borough Council to limit Mayor Michele Bartek’s attendance at executive sessions of council, was disappointing coming from a man who claims to have 60 years experience as reporter. Frassinelli’s demeanor and misstatement of facts show a lack of professionalism and integrity as a reporter.

I and other members of council did not take this decision lightly. Prior to our decision to act on this matter, we consulted with our borough solicitor and the Pennsylvania Association of Boroughs, both of which provided us with the proper procedure needed to implement this policy.

The laws governing executive sessions of council very simply state: Council may meet in executive session to discuss various topics such as contracts, personnel matters and other such subjects. Executive sessions of council are just that, executive sessions of council, not executive sessions of council and the mayor. Nowhere does the law state that a mayor is entitled to attend executive sessions of council. Persons attending executive sessions of council are at the request of council. It is the sole responsibility of council to determine who attends an executive session.

Mr. Frassinelli was incorrect when he stated that we are attempting to ban the mayor from all executive sessions. The motion made was, “To allow our solicitor to draft a policy when Mayor Bartek would be allowed to attend our executive sessions. His statement that I somehow coerced my fellow members of council to vote with me on this matter is an insult to the integrity of those members who have seen fit to enact this policy.

The simple facts are that Bartek is the only person responsible for these actions being necessary. Bartek has been a complete failure as a mayor. If it was possible, I would have her removed from office. Since taking office, Bartek’s inept administration of the police department has cost the taxpayers of Lansford thousands of dollars in wasted overtime, legal fees and cash payments to police officers to settle grievances filed against the mayor for her refusal to follow the police department’s contract. Her continuing attacks against the members of our police department finally resulted in filing of an unfair labor practice complaint against her by the members of the police department.

Some of her actions which have made it necessary to limit her involvement in council executive sessions include:

During one executive session Bartek threatened to reduce an officer in rank for his filing a grievance against her. After another session she ordered a police officer to “target” Councilman William Chuma for a DUI arrest. After he disagreed with her on a police issue, she then demanded that all three members of the street department be fired and arrested for allegedly destroying a house trailer on Dock Street with the borough payloader. Following an extensive investigation by the police department a witness was located and the operator of the vehicle that was seen repeatedly smashing his vehicle into the trailer admitted that he had destroyed the trailer. When confronted with the evidence clearing the borough crew of her allegations, she claimed I, Bill Chuma, the borough crew and the police department all conspired to cover up this matter.

Late last year, Bartek posted a photograph of the 100 block of East Water Street on her Facebook page, calling the block “The Ghetto.” When I asked her to remove the term “Ghetto” from her post due to the racial overtones of the term, I was met with her usual rant of obscenities.

When Councilman John Turcmanovich and I offered to meet with her to review the police contract to eliminate the ongoing grievances and costs associated with settling the grievances that were being filed against her by members of the police department, we were met with a slew of obscenities from her reminding us who is in charge of the police department.

Earlier this year she reprimanded a police officer for failing to issue a parking ticket to a truck that was making a delivery at a local pizza shop, after the officer declined to issue a ticket, she then obtained Lansford Police Department statement forms and went house to house in that area to obtain written statements from people in the area who had witnessed this most horrendous act of double parking.

Bartek and Councilman Martin Ditsky then traveled to the state police barracks, where she attempted to present her written statements to the state police in an attempt to get the state police to take some type of action against the officer.

She then reprimanded another officer for allegedly not logging all his calls on night shift. A review of the records indicated the officer logged all his calls for the month. When the officers appealed these reprimands in accordance with the police contract, the reprimands were dismissed as baseless by Turcmanovich, who chairs the public safety committee.

When confronted with this, she replied that she does not recognize council’s authority to overturn her reprimands. After refusing repeated requests to remove these dismissed letters of reprimand, the taxpayers again paid the legal fees accumulated until she finally removed these letters.

In April of this year, Bartek made accusations that a member of our office staff had stolen $8,000 from the police pension fund. To date the mayor has not contacted either the police department, District Attorney or any other law enforcement agency to request an investigation into this alleged theft.

Though I cannot speak for the other members of council, despite Mr. Frassinelli’s comments that I have somehow coerced other members of council to vote with me on this matter, I can only say that if I have to choose between protecting the employees of this borough from Bartek’s continuing false accusations and unsubstantiated allegations or being called an Idiot by the likes of Bruce Frassinelli, I could only say that I have been called worse.

Bruce Markovich is the president of Lansford Council.