by Melissa Lajara
March 2, 2007
Still fired up over the controversy surrounding the interview of Manuela Mihailescu for a seat on the town's Historic Preservation Commission, more than 130 people turned out to the Town of Rochester's monthly meeting, held in the Accord Fire Hall.
At that meeting, the town board — with one member absent — voted down the appointment of Mihailescu.
But it was in stark contrast to the meeting last month, which was abruptly adjourned after an overflow crowd — many of whom were kept outside after town hall reached its capacity — began protesting. Some in the near-capacity audience at the Fire Hall alluded to the incident with signs that read "this is our house" and "we will be heard."
Resident Anna Katz commended the board for its choice to adjourn the Feb. 1 meeting, saying the crowd outside was "threatening, abusive, loud and scary."
Imre Beke, the chairman of the conservative party locally, told the board "when you openly and blatantly turned your backs on the people... you chose power over authority and legitimacy." Town Supervisor Pam Duke finally addressed the events in a statement she read and distributed to the audience.
"We are aware that many of you are here this evening because you feel Ms. Mihailescu was wronged by the town board," she said. Duke stressed that without a signed waiver, she had to be careful to preserve the confidentiality of the executive session, but said the information about Mihailescu's alleged link to pornography was provided by residents.
"The town board had many questions," she said, which included whether the information was relevant and reliable, and whether it would impact Mihailescu's ability to serve the commission.
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