POUGHKEEPSIE – Five Poughkeepsie council members voted to extend city bus service for three months, to give the city and Dutchess County more time to effectively transfer the service to the county. The resolution calls for transferring almost $204,000 within the city budget.
Councilman Christopher Petsas, who authored the resolution, concedes
it will likely be vetoed by Mayor Robert Rolison, meaning the city buses
will stop running after Friday, despite what happened Tuesday night.
Six votes would be needed to override an expected veto.
“We have seen hundreds and hundreds of people come to this chambers to speak in support of our buses,” Petsas said. “It is our job as elected officials to be your voice. I’m sorry that we don’t have that sixth voice at this time, but rest assured that us five support you, we stand with you and we’re doing everything we can to maintain our buses.”
Petsas also had harsh words for the three council members, Mike Young, Matthew McNamara and Lee Klein, who did not attend the meeting.
“I’m not going to mince my words how disappointed I am that those that oppose our city system are not in this room this evening. Whether you support this resolution or you don’t support this resolution, you have an obligation as a councilperson to be in this room to express that vote and to cast that vote.”
Young, McNamara and Klein plan to state their position on the buses later this morning.
Several residents attended the five-minute special meeting Tuesday night, but in keeping with past practice at special meetings, there was no public comment, a practice upheld by the corporation counsel. Paul Ackerman noted that the public has used every opportunity to comment at every council meeting since late last year when Rolison called for eliminating the city bus service on June 30, as part of his proposed 2017 budget.
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