Recall or resignation the talk of Hillside - Star-Ledger

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Hillside mayor urges her critics to come forward

By Jason Jett, Star-Ledger Staff

Not since Barbara Rowen introduced tax-cutting reforms after dismantling a Byzantine township committee government a decade ago has there been so much tension at Hillside Town Hall.

Mayor Karen McCoy Oliver, who took office when Rowen abruptly resigned in late 1999, now finds herself as isolated as her predecessor.

Talk persists of a mayoral resignation or recall, but Oliver insists it stems from a few critics "saying bad things about me."

The comments started shortly after Oliver began her second term in July, having narrowly won re-election over real-estate broker Joseph Menza on the strength of votes from predominantly black neighborhoods.

In response, she has tied her mayoralty to the majority of residents who voted for her, stating "when people attack me, they are attacking the people of Hillside."

The mayor initially said she did not want to respond to comments regarding her departure, adding that instead she would put forth objectives for her current four-year term.

However, she has failed to articulate any goals, with postponement after postponement of stating her objectives for the past six months.

In addition, she has antagonized some administrators. Police chief Robert Quinlan said she overstepped her authority in attempting to reinstate a police detective he demoted to patrolman more than a year ago.

The officer filed a grievance in January 2005, and Oliver approved it in August. But Quinlan has not reassigned the officer.

"The authority to assign individuals in the police department rests with the police chief and not the mayor," Quinlan said.

Council members acknowledged the mayor is confronting problems, but they consider them more political than issue-oriented. None is openly critical except Gerald "Pateesh" Freedman, the lone remaining ally of Rowen.

"I was in the forefront of not being so pro-mayor because she's just not productive," he said. "They (department heads) covered for her a long time, and now they are tired of covering for her, and there's a rift."

Freedman, a frequent critic of the Hillside Democratic Municipal Committee, said the mayor seems to have fallen from favor with party leadership.

In November, Democratic Committee Chariwoman Charlotte DeFilippo said there was no problem between the party and the mayor. Since then, however, she has not returned calls seeking comment.

Last year, the Municipal Alliance, a group of town hall administrators that organizes community activities and is headed by the mayor, dissolved with the membership resigning en masse.

The members included Township Clerk Janet Vlaisavljeciv, Assistant Clerk Diane Rowe and Health Officer Eliabeth Geminder, all longtime employees and Democratic Party loyalists. Oliver appointed two other administrators to reorganize the panel, but they subsequently resigned, too.

In another example, 1st Ward Councilman Joseph Pinckney, the mayor's staunchest ally on the council, was removed from the municipal planning board and replaced with a party favorite.

For her part, the mayor says she senses there is a problem but does not know what it is.

"If there's something, it's not on my end," she said. "And how can you correct anything if you're not aware of it? They need to let me know. That's how issues get resolved.

"I would love for them to come to me and state what the issue is," she added. "That's what would happen if everyone had the interest of the township first and wanted this issue resolved. Nothing can happen when people are at loggerheads.

"Be adults and come to me and say 'Karen, we have this issue,'" the mayor continued. "Obviously, this is being done behind the scenes, and it's not productive."

Oliver emphasized that she is the elected mayor and said those attempting to undermine her are in effect trying to disenfranchise the voters.

"I don't attack any of them," she said. "There are people who have an agenda, and they are not being fair to the rest of the people of Hillside."

Councilman-at-large Jerome Jewell, who was elected last fall and is the newest member of the council, said political maneuvering is occurring but he's not involved.

"I am a supporter of the mayor," he said. "I have to support her; she's the first black mayor. We were elected on the same ticket. It would be crazy for us to attack and destroy each other."

Third Ward Councilman John Kulish added, "There is speculation on a lot of different things. I heard she was leaving for another job at one time. But that was just a rumor. She never told us personally that was going to leave office."

Kulish stressed that residents are not complaining about the mayor, but that the criticism is coming from people in town hall.

"A recall is normal when there's friction between the mayor and departments, or when a mayor is performing what she feels are her duties and rights and someone disagrees," said Kulish, the only member of the GOP on the council. "The only option is, don't vote her in or have a recall."

"But they don't tell me anything," Kulish added. "I'm a Republican."

Published in the Star-Ledger, Sunday, February 12, 2006, page 39.

Many thanks to reader JK, who spent some time on a snowy afternoon typing this up for all to read.

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