Board releases Hargrove report, sets forum

By TOM RUE

MONTICELLO - In a rancorous village board meeting, Monticello trustees voted to release to the public a confidential "investigation in the matter of mayor Robert Friedland's comments and actions."

The report blasts Friedland for a February 8 phone call he made to police chief Michael Brennan demanding a job for his son. The board as a whole is faulted for taking no action until accounts of the discussion appeared in the press in mid-April.

"I have no problem releasing it. I don't necessarily agree with it," said mayor Robert Friedland. A public airing is slated for May 30, 7:30 P.M., at the Monticello Neighborhood Facility, Jefferson St.

The author of the report, James Hargrove, said he will attend the meeting, noting he has 10 hours remaining on his contract with the village.

Other actions Hargrove is contracted to oversee for the village include racial sensitivity training for all employees, and a test-taking strategy course to help residents prepare for civil service tests.

Trustee Gary Sommers admitted leaking Hargrove's report -- which trustees had agreed was "confidential" -- before other board members had reviewed it, to a reporter from the Middletown Times Herald-Record. Friedland called Sommers' action a violation of the village's code of ethics, asserting he should be censored.

A suit filed by three Monticello residents seeking to have Hargrove's fee paid out of trustees' pockets is pending in supreme court before justice Robert C. Williams.

One hotly debated issue at the May 22 meeting was the assignment of a village-owned automobile for Hargrove's use in traveling between Monticello and his home in Queens.

Friedland vented anger at Hargrove during the meeting, at one point during a recess calling the report "just a bunch of political bullshit... It ruined my kid's career and it ruined my life."

Other business

Trustees and members of the audience discussed the site for a roller-hockey rink. For the last two years, Monticello resident Allen Benski and other volunteers have coached area youth. The rink has been moved three times at public expense. Officials are seeking a permanent site.

Independence Day pyrotechnics were scheduled for July 3 at sundown, at Monticello Raceway; with a rain date of July 4.

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