City council discusses DPW and hears from supporters of its leadership
NORWICH – City of Norwich Common Council convened at its regular meeting Tuesday evening, where the mayor and council further addressed the action of placing Acting Superintendent of Public Works George Carnrike, Jr. on paid administrative leave, after members of the public spoke in support of Carnrike during open forum.
Paid Administrative Leave
George Carnrike Jr. was placed on paid administrative leave on Thursday for reasons not made public.
Although charged with improper disposal of hazardous waste, a violation, by the Department of Environmental Conservation on Tuesday, June 12, Alderman Ward 1 Matthew Caldwell and the mayor said the charge was unrelated to Carnrike being placed on leave two days later during an emergency meeting on Thursday, June 14.
However, no official would offer any information on why George Carnrike, Jr. was placed on leave.
George Carnrike, Jr. is the brother of Norwich Mayor Christine Carnrike.
At last night's meeting the mayor complained the city council had failed to properly inform her of last week's meeting to put her brother on administrative leave, because the two are related. She also said the issue was getting more public attention than it deserved.
After five people spoke in support of Carnrike, Alderman Ward 1 Matthew Caldwell said he sympathized with their support for the assistant superintendent of public works but said, "Unfortunately we've come up against circumstances that have quite frankly probably blown our mind, and in fairness to the employee, in fairness to the taxpayers and stakeholders of this city, we've taken what we believe is the least harsh action possible to get to the bottom of this as quickly as possible."
Mayor Carnrike invites recalibration
City of Norwich Mayor Christine Carnrike addressed meeting attendees for about 15 minutes following the open forum. She invited the city to recalibrate in light of the city mission, and re-examine its policies and processes in the wake of the council placing the acting superintendent of public works on paid leave.
Carnrike said, "Council's action to place the assistant superintendent of public works on paid administrative leave was not a decision I was part of. I had not been part of the meetings because I share the same last name. I won't be excluded going forward."
On Thursday, Carnrike said she emailed a policy to city government administration that the mayor shall have knowledge of any meeting before a meeting notice is distributed, effective immediately.
She noted that eight weeks ago, former Human Resource Director Deborah DeForest was placed on paid leave pending an investigation after it was "...determined to be necessary after months – if not years – requiring attention.
"I cannot stress enough: personnel actions are not, nor should they ever be, taken lightly, and they should be done when absolutely necessary."
The city has not released any documentation about the investigation or its costs. On Thursday the city clerk's office said it had no paper work on the investigation or any invoices.
While the mayor acknowledged allegations against the former human resource director and her resignation, she also addressed the allegations against George Carnrike, Jr.
The mayor said George Carnrike Jr. continued to be involved in running the department, despite being placed on paid leave.
She said the decision to place Carnrike on paid leave is "...indicative of a decision that was made hastily to satisfy someone or something, and the impact of such action for our taxpayers will be detrimental if not for this employee's commitment to the City of Norwich and his continuing to lead and direct from home – just not in person."
Carnrike also said she and the council should not be making any decisions on any action item from innuendo, incomplete reports, anonymous callers, and online comments.
"What I say to you folks: Own your comments, sign your name, and call me, better yet meet me, but if you want to take it down, my number is (607) 316-4703."
Open Forum
Four Norwich residents and a New Berlin resident used the open forum portion of the meeting to voice support for Carnrike in the wake of his being placed on paid administrative leave.
Norwich resident Kurt Edwards said, "George dedicates countless hours and has for the last 25, maybe even approaching 30 years. And he does it for the right reasons ... I believe very strongly that George is a good person and a very important member of this community and so I am proud to call him a friend."
Jim McNeil, Supervisor of City of Norwich Wards 1, 2, 3 but speaking as a citizen, said "I just have a feeling that it might seem 'hasty,' in the words of somebody else, hasty action, and I hope, I really hope that the homework was done ... I hope that you will search your own hearts and minds and question everything that comes in front of you concerning a personnel issue. Whether it's fact or it's not fact, and those are the important parts to know."
Norwich resident and business owner Monte Westcott said he knows Carnrike because of his countless hours working at Kurt Beyer Pool and elsewhere, be it on nights, weekends, and holidays. "I don't know exactly what went down ... But my dad always told me, if you didn't make any mistakes, you weren't doing nothing," said Westcott.
City of Norwich Parks Commission Chair Chris Sprague said, "I've never met someone I've dealt with through the city who probably cared about the city more than George. His generosity, both voluntarily and with his own time ... I have not come across anyone in the town of Norwich who had made more of an impression than George."
New Berlin resident Betsy Baio said after two terms serving on the board of Chamber of Commerce, George is one of the best people she's had the pleasure of knowing. "George has dedicated more hours, more time, went above and beyond … You just don't meet people like that."
In response to open forum speakers, Caldwell said, "Everything you've told us, we know. We've heard it, we've seen it, we've been a part of it with him. To be in this position, for us, is quite shocking as it is to you ... But to do nothing with the information that's been shared with us would be 100 percent irresponsible."
Pictured: Alderman Ward 6 Robert Jeffrey, Alderman Ward 5 David Zieno, Alderwoman Ward 4 Linda Kays-Biviano, Alderman Ward 3 John Deierlein, Alderman Ward 2 Brian Doliver, Alderman Ward 1 Matthew Caldwell. Back: Deputy City Clerk Agnes Eaton and City of Norwich Mayor Christine Carnrike. (Grady Thompson photo)
Paid Administrative Leave
George Carnrike Jr. was placed on paid administrative leave on Thursday for reasons not made public.
Although charged with improper disposal of hazardous waste, a violation, by the Department of Environmental Conservation on Tuesday, June 12, Alderman Ward 1 Matthew Caldwell and the mayor said the charge was unrelated to Carnrike being placed on leave two days later during an emergency meeting on Thursday, June 14.
However, no official would offer any information on why George Carnrike, Jr. was placed on leave.
George Carnrike, Jr. is the brother of Norwich Mayor Christine Carnrike.
At last night's meeting the mayor complained the city council had failed to properly inform her of last week's meeting to put her brother on administrative leave, because the two are related. She also said the issue was getting more public attention than it deserved.
After five people spoke in support of Carnrike, Alderman Ward 1 Matthew Caldwell said he sympathized with their support for the assistant superintendent of public works but said, "Unfortunately we've come up against circumstances that have quite frankly probably blown our mind, and in fairness to the employee, in fairness to the taxpayers and stakeholders of this city, we've taken what we believe is the least harsh action possible to get to the bottom of this as quickly as possible."
Mayor Carnrike invites recalibration
City of Norwich Mayor Christine Carnrike addressed meeting attendees for about 15 minutes following the open forum. She invited the city to recalibrate in light of the city mission, and re-examine its policies and processes in the wake of the council placing the acting superintendent of public works on paid leave.
Carnrike said, "Council's action to place the assistant superintendent of public works on paid administrative leave was not a decision I was part of. I had not been part of the meetings because I share the same last name. I won't be excluded going forward."
On Thursday, Carnrike said she emailed a policy to city government administration that the mayor shall have knowledge of any meeting before a meeting notice is distributed, effective immediately.
She noted that eight weeks ago, former Human Resource Director Deborah DeForest was placed on paid leave pending an investigation after it was "...determined to be necessary after months – if not years – requiring attention.
"I cannot stress enough: personnel actions are not, nor should they ever be, taken lightly, and they should be done when absolutely necessary."
The city has not released any documentation about the investigation or its costs. On Thursday the city clerk's office said it had no paper work on the investigation or any invoices.
While the mayor acknowledged allegations against the former human resource director and her resignation, she also addressed the allegations against George Carnrike, Jr.
The mayor said George Carnrike Jr. continued to be involved in running the department, despite being placed on paid leave.
She said the decision to place Carnrike on paid leave is "...indicative of a decision that was made hastily to satisfy someone or something, and the impact of such action for our taxpayers will be detrimental if not for this employee's commitment to the City of Norwich and his continuing to lead and direct from home – just not in person."
Carnrike also said she and the council should not be making any decisions on any action item from innuendo, incomplete reports, anonymous callers, and online comments.
"What I say to you folks: Own your comments, sign your name, and call me, better yet meet me, but if you want to take it down, my number is (607) 316-4703."
Open Forum
Four Norwich residents and a New Berlin resident used the open forum portion of the meeting to voice support for Carnrike in the wake of his being placed on paid administrative leave.
Norwich resident Kurt Edwards said, "George dedicates countless hours and has for the last 25, maybe even approaching 30 years. And he does it for the right reasons ... I believe very strongly that George is a good person and a very important member of this community and so I am proud to call him a friend."
Jim McNeil, Supervisor of City of Norwich Wards 1, 2, 3 but speaking as a citizen, said "I just have a feeling that it might seem 'hasty,' in the words of somebody else, hasty action, and I hope, I really hope that the homework was done ... I hope that you will search your own hearts and minds and question everything that comes in front of you concerning a personnel issue. Whether it's fact or it's not fact, and those are the important parts to know."
Norwich resident and business owner Monte Westcott said he knows Carnrike because of his countless hours working at Kurt Beyer Pool and elsewhere, be it on nights, weekends, and holidays. "I don't know exactly what went down ... But my dad always told me, if you didn't make any mistakes, you weren't doing nothing," said Westcott.
City of Norwich Parks Commission Chair Chris Sprague said, "I've never met someone I've dealt with through the city who probably cared about the city more than George. His generosity, both voluntarily and with his own time ... I have not come across anyone in the town of Norwich who had made more of an impression than George."
New Berlin resident Betsy Baio said after two terms serving on the board of Chamber of Commerce, George is one of the best people she's had the pleasure of knowing. "George has dedicated more hours, more time, went above and beyond … You just don't meet people like that."
In response to open forum speakers, Caldwell said, "Everything you've told us, we know. We've heard it, we've seen it, we've been a part of it with him. To be in this position, for us, is quite shocking as it is to you ... But to do nothing with the information that's been shared with us would be 100 percent irresponsible."
Pictured: Alderman Ward 6 Robert Jeffrey, Alderman Ward 5 David Zieno, Alderwoman Ward 4 Linda Kays-Biviano, Alderman Ward 3 John Deierlein, Alderman Ward 2 Brian Doliver, Alderman Ward 1 Matthew Caldwell. Back: Deputy City Clerk Agnes Eaton and City of Norwich Mayor Christine Carnrike. (Grady Thompson photo)
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