Dear Editor:
It was refreshing to read Mr. Kane’s letter on the settlement of the Mayo Lynch lawsuit in last week’s edition of the Secaucus Reporter. I do not know the gentleman who so eloquently expressed the sentiment of most Secaucus people and wish to join him in commending the Elwell administration for their action, as it was long overdue.
The settlement shuts the spigot on the wanton waste of taxpayer’s money on legal fees, over $4,000,000 as Mr. Kane reminds us. I have been an outspoken critic on these legal expenditures for years and even hired an attorney to obtain copies of these bills from the SMUA in order to review their accuracy. It is unfortunate that the conspirators and criminals walked away from this sordid affair virtually unscathed while the only injured party was the Mayo Lynch engineering firm which was punished for steadfastly resisting the contractor’s attempts to ripoff the taxpayer.
I concur with Mr. Kane’s assessment that the settlement was a good deal for the taxpayer because had Mayo Lynch brought this case before a jury, the jury’s award would have been much greater.
Michael Lari
Former SMUA Commissioner
Former Independent Councilman