Lansford Borough Council on Wednesday voted down a move to censure its vice president for reportedly offering its former council president the job of borough manager to step down from his seat.

Councilman Bruce Markovich, who before January served as council president for six years, moved to censure Vice President Joe Genits, who is serving as acting council president since George Gilbert’s resignation in January.

Markovich said that Genits offered him the position of borough manager on Jan. 2, three days before the new council was seated and reorganized, in return for him stepping down as council president.

“On Friday, Jan. 2, you came into the office and told me you have the votes to make George council president,” Markovich said.

Genits denied saying those words and pointed out that he was not seated on council yet when the conversation occurred.

“I complimented you with all the time that you spent sitting in this office that would you consider ever becoming borough manager, and you said, ‘Absolutely not,’” Genits said to Markovich.

Markovich agreed that he did not want the position. He also said that Genits then offered him a position of being a special grant writer, which he also turned down.

Genits responds

“About the grants,” Genits responded to Markovich, “I said, ‘You’re the most knowledgeable about the grants, and would you assist anyone else that would come in?’ Then it led to who would be president, and I told you directly before I got on council, when I get there, I don’t have intention to vote for you.”

Markovich said the conversation turned to him stepping down as council president to be borough manager. Genits agreed that he would have had to step down from council to take that position.

The two councilmen disagreed on whether the position was offered in order to have Markovich step down.

“I didn’t offer you anything,” Genits said. “I was a citizen. I was not on council.”

Councilwoman Gwyneth Collevechio countered that Genits was sworn in the previous month, before the conversation took place.

Genits said being sworn in before taking the seat for the reorganizational meeting doesn’t make him a council member.

Markovich said councilmen shouldn’t be offering jobs to anyone, and Genits said he made a suggestion and complimented his time and dedication.

Censure vote

They continued to disagree, and Genits asked council to put the motion on censuring him to a vote.

Markovich made the motion, and Collevechio seconded it. The motion failed 5-2 with Markovich and Collevechio the no votes.

Another motion brought by Markovich also lost traction following a discussion and the partial reading of an existing policy that covered the supervision of office staff.

Markovich sought a motion to prevent any council member from interfering with the borough secretary or treasurer in the performance of their duties.

Attorney question

Markovich explained that Treasurer Maria Ahner was trying to resolve the issue of former Police Chief and now Councilman Jack Soberick’s pension, and felt it was necessary to call the labor attorneys involved to see if something had been worked out.

Markovich claimed that Gilbert, with Genits present, prevented her from calling the attorney.

“So she could not call attorney (Michael) Miller to consult with him to see if there was any resolution to Jack’s pension,” Markovich said. “We should not have members of council interfering with what our treasurer thinks is necessary to do to resolve a situation.”

Genits asked Markovich how he wanted to resolve the matter, and he replied with a motion that they cannot interfere with their duties.

Borough Secretary Ashley McLaughlin suggested that a policy might be better for this situation, and council members agreed. Soberick said a policy should cover every borough department so there would be no micromanaging or interfering.

Collevechio said that there has to be some recourse for that situation, and Soberick said they would go to their chairman.

Office policy

Genits then asked if there was something passed by a previous council, and asked McLaughlin to retrieve a policy from the office. McLaughlin said that policy says they referred to the chairs and got up to get it.

“I think this might already be resolved,” Genits said.

Markovich said they can’t have someone coming in saying they cannot do what they think they need to do, and Mayor Denise Leibensperger asked what happens if they are doing something they shouldn’t.

Markovich said that was different, and this situation was where they were doing what they thought was needed. Collevechio added that Ahner had a fiduciary obligation to do her job right, and that was what she was doing.

Genits then reviewed the supervision policy, which was adopted by council on Feb. 14, 2018. The policy covers supervision of office staff, similar to other employees such as public works and police, he said.

Genits explained that any directives to office workers goes through the chair of the municipal administration committee, and if that person is not present, the directive goes to council president and then vice president, he said in reading the policy.

“So, it already exists,” Genits said. “You have a policy, and pending whoever is nominated or placed on committees will determine who they report to.”

Council, which added a new council member, John Zym, Wednesday night, has yet to reorganize and select a new council president, who will assign committees and chairs.

Collevechio said that this motion was about interference, and Genits said that this policy clears that up.

“It’s a policy already approved by council,” he said, and turned to Markovich, who previously chaired municipal administration, and asked if office staff took direction from him during his tenure.

Markovich said he didn’t give orders, but if there was a question referred to him that was another matter. But in this situation, Markovich said he would not have stopped the treasurer from calling an attorney to resolve the pension issue.

Council agreed that there was a policy in place and took no action on the motion Markovich introduced.

Gilbert, contacted Thursday, said that he never told Ahner that she could not contact attorney Miller regarding Soberick’s pension. He only questioned why she wanted to contact him, he said.

“That’s the exact truth and there’s an email to prove it,” he said.

Gilbert also provided the emails to the Times News. He also provided an email sent to him Friday from Ahner, in which she states that she was not stopped or prevented from contacting Miller.

The email explains that she wanted to confirm the what was required after council approved Soberick’s pension, and the next day solicitor Bob Yurchak explained that the pension company needed a letter from the borough and he would take care of the matter.

“Therefore, I did not need to contact Miller directly,” she wrote to Gilbert.