At a special meeting on Thursday, April 12, the Bethlehem Town Board voted unanimously to appoint Albany County Legislator Jack Cunningham to its interim supervisor post.
Cunningham, a Democrat, will fill the seat left vacant by former Supervisor Theresa Egan, who left to serve as deputy commissioner for the state Department of Motor Vehicles beginning next month.
Egan, the town’s first Democratic supervisor in 150 years, served as supervisor for the past three and a half years, and Cunningham will serve what remains of her term. He has said he plans on running for a full term in November.
Cunningham, a Delmar resident, has been a county legislator in the 34th District since 2004. He will resign from his part-time county legislative seat and his full-time employment at Key Bank, where he serves as a technology project manager.
The town supervisor position pays $99,000 annually. The board, three Democrats and one Independent, voted 4-to-0 in favor of appointing Cunningham.
Before the resolution was passed to appoint Cunningham, the public and the board were given an opportunity to comment on the action.
Albany County legislator Herb Reilly, a Democrat and former supervisor of the town of New Scotland, expressed his support of Cunningham.
I think it’s a great shame we’re going to lose him in the Legislature, said Reilly, but added, `If you want to get the job done, put Jack in there.`
Jared King asked that the board explore alternative options before appointing Cunningham, including not appointing anyone and having a four-member board place Deputy Supervisor Dan Plummer as interim supervisor or promote a qualified town official to the position.
Plummer said he was not in the position to assume the full-time responsibility that the duties of supervisor require and that it was in the best interest of the town to make the appointment of a qualified official immediately.
In his comments before moving to adopt the resolution to appoint Cunningham, Plummer said that he thought Cunningham would make an excellent town supervisor, citing his roots in the community, his judgment and work ethic.
Board member Kyle Kotary , a Democrat, echoed Plummer’s sentiments, calling Cunningham an `active community leader` who possesses exceptional experience and leadership abilities.
`I think we had a great leader over the last couple of years, and I think we’ll have a great leader over the next couple of years,` said Kotary.
Sam Messina, an Independent, said when he was deciding to accept a role as a town board member, a friend offered this piece of advice: `If you want to be on the board, do it only if you’re interested in service.`
Messina said that friend was Jack Cunningham.
Messina said he reviewed Cunningham’s resume in preparation for the April 12 appointment, and what struck him about Cunningham was his schooling, `top-notch experience` and his continued professional and personal growth.
Board member JoAnn Dawson, an Independent, kept her comments brief, but said she was confident Cunningham had the capacity and experience to serve as supervisor.
In accepting his new position, Cunningham said he is committed to ensuring Egan’s goals of protecting the quality of life in the town and ensuring smart growth. Cunningham said one of his primary goals would be to use his experience as an IT professional to streamline technology in government offices to reduce costs and increase efficiency. Another one of Cunningham’s stated goals, he said, is to see the proposed Vista Technology Park in Slingerlands through to its conclusion.
`I think everyone here agrees that Terri sets a very high standard and is a tough act to follow,` said Cunningham. `I hope that I meet all your expectations in my role as town supervisor.“