Town Board, Highway Supe Squabble Could Cost $75k

As town leaders attempt to get baseball fields in Calverton open by Memorial Day, the town may be paying to the tune of $75,000 for a disagreement that could keep the town from using highway department equipment for in-house work on a 200-stall parking lot at the field.

Twice over the past three weeks, Highway Department Superintendent Gio Woodson has made purchase requests from the town board - one for a $77,000 pole barn under which to house equipment, and another for $12,000 in security cameras - and twice he has received pushback at Town Hall.

Supervisor Sean Walter said he refuses to approve of any more spending in the department because Woodson has failed to produce a prioritized list of drainage projects in the town, a list he says he asked for two years ago.

"He may be the highway superintendent, but we set his budget," Walter said last week. "I've gotta protect the taxpayers, and he doesn't have more authority than the town supervisor. The taxpayers come first. And you can't balance drainage projects and cleaning out sumps with cameras and something that wasn't reported to police."

Woodson has said in return that his department's equipment won't be available for use for the Calverton ballfield project. As a result, the town's Buildings and Grounds Department would have to lease out equipment for $1,000 per day over two weeks, Councilman George Gabrielsen said, in addition to labor costs.

The cost of the project would rise from $50,000 if it were done in-house to $125,000 if bid out, said Deputy Supervisor Tara McLaughlin.

Gabrielsen, calling the riff a "snag between departments," said that either way - whether the town uses the highway department equipment or not - the cost can be covered. The town has roughly $500,000 in recreation development funds which is reserved for projects such as this, plus a $250,000 matching grant to complete work at the fields.

Highway department equipment, according to State Highway Law, "shall be used by the town superintendent in such manner and in such places in such towns as he shall deem best."

Woodson said in an interview on Thursday what he has said at previous meetings - that as an elected official like any other town board member, he is accountable to voters, and as such should be given the autonomy of deciding what to do with his own budget.

"I'm elected just like they are," he said. "If you want respect, you have to give respect."

Woodson took particular offense to a comment Walter made about the Highway Department's destruction of Weeping Willow Motel on West Main Street.

"It took Gio like four months to do it," Walter said at last week's work session. "We'd have been better off to get a private contractor to do it."

Woodson said Thursday that if that's the case, they can.

"You can't dog me one day and then come to me tomorrow and ask to do something for you," he said. When asked what would need to happen for him to allow Buildings and Grounds to use a Highway Department payloader, he said, "Giving the Highway Superintendent some respect would be a good start. Maybe an apology."

On Tuesday, town board members voted by a 3-2 margin to approve Woodson's cameras, with Walter and Gabrielsen voting against.

Councilman John Dunleavy said he favors mending fences with Woodson and working with him, not against. Councilman Jim Wooten - who was directed after the work session to speak with Woodson to try and work things out - has spoken out at prior meetings against micromanaging the highway department budget.

And Councilwoman Jodi Giglio - citing a residential destruction which she said saved the town over $80,000 - said last week she favors giving a little to get a little. She added on Thursday that Woodson's drainage list is said to be forthcoming.

"If the taxpayers are saving money by him demolishing Kay Road and Weeping Willow Motel, I don’t want to damage that relationship and cost the taxpayers more money to do those things Gio is doing," she said.

Correction: A previous version of this article said Woodson's request for cameras was denied.