By Josh Resnek
An $11.4M appropriation sought by the mayor from the city council to place a new roof on the old high school on Broadway failed by a 6-5 vote Monday night at city hall.
The vote was taken at 9:35p.m. following almost two hours of sometimes heated debate and angry exchanges with Mayor Carlo Demaria.
An earlier vote to postpone the mayor’s request for another two weeks failed by an 8-3 vote.
That led to the ultimate vote rejecting the roof measure.
Council President Robert Van Campen, and Councilor’s Stephanie Smith, Katie Rogers, Guerline Alcy Joboin, Peter Pietrantonio, Michael Marchese voted against the measure, sending the mayor back to the drawing board.
Van Campen questioned the mayor’s objective.
Rogers said she could not vote for the new roof unless the overcrowding issue was dealt with.
Petrantonio and the mayor shared angry words.
The mayor insisted Pietrantonio was making the wrong decision.
Alcy Joboin said she heard nothing about reducing overcrowding in the public schools.
Smith and the mayor got into a yelling match. Smith said she needed a plan. She described what she heard from the mayor as “fake.” She said the mayor had offended her.
Marchese supported his colleagues.
The mayor said he couldn’t possibly act without consulting with School Superintendent William Hart.
Hart was not invited by the mayor to the meeting and did not appear.