Bayonne Mayor Mark Smith has asked for a probe into possible improprieties by Parking Authority Attorney Peter Cresci, saying Cresci at one point had assumed duties for several full time and part time jobs, and had apparently taken salaries without prior approval before he was dismissed as the city business administrator.
The mayor’s action came two days after Cresci filed a suit against the Parking Authority in the U.S. District Court, claiming he has been the victim of reprisals by Mayor Smith through the Parking Authority executive director. Cresci’s suit claims that the Parking Authority has violated federal civil rights laws, some provisions under the federal Hatch Act, and the state’s Conscientious Employee Protection Act by allegedly coercing him into leaving his post as Parking Authority attorney.
Smith raised the allegations before the July 16 City Council meeting, but brought a sharp rebuke from Councilman Ted Connolly, who said this was something that should not have been aired in public.
“I’m here because I have growing concerns about the management and operations of the Bayonne Parking Authority,” Smith told the City Council, noting that the Parking Authority is an autonomous agency that is not under the control of the City of Bayonne.
“The authority has been embroiled in complex litigation from a lawsuit brought by a former executive director,” Smith said. “Sometime before I was elected, the Parking Authority came under the defacto control of the former business administrator and former assistant city attorney, Peter Cresci, as the Parking Authority’s general counsel and later as the unofficial executive director.”
Smith said at one point, Cresci appears to have been employed as a full time business administrator, part time assistant city attorney, part time Parking Authority general counsel, full time Parking Authority executive director – all the while maintaining a private law practice.
“As you are aware, this individual is no longer employed by our city,” Smith said.
Cresci, the mayor said, earned $25,000 per year for his part time work with the Parking Authority – $10,000 more than the previous attorney holding the same position.
“At some point, Mr. Cresci dismissed the authority’s new executive director – a person he had recruited – and gradually assumed the director’s duties. We believe this was gradual and without specific authorization. We heard subsequently that Mr. Cresci may have been paying himself an additional $68,000 in annual compensation for the full time position of executive director. This was while he was being paid $113,000 as the business administrator/assistant city attorney.”
“That this required annual safety check is delayed for unknown reasons is cause for great concern.” – Mayor Mark Smith
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“I have also been advised that the Parking Authority has failed to submit its annual audit to the state of New Jersey that was due on April 30 this year and, as we speak, still has not been submitted,” Smith said. “That this required annual safety check is delayed for unknown reasons is cause for great concern.”
The mayor is calling for records to be made available at the very least to the Parking Authority commissioners – who apparently do not have access to them currently,
“so they can investigate what is going on,” he said. “Unfortunately, despite repeated requests, Mr. Cresci has refused to be accountable to the Parking Authority’s commissioners.”
Smith praised the Parking Authority for bringing in independent counsel to investigate the matter.
The mayor said the Parking Authority took the unusual, but correct step of hiring special counsel to assist them at getting to the bottom of this matter.
“I hope there is an explanation for everything,” he said.
Cresci denied charges
Cresci, however, said that the Parking Authority trustees approved of everything.
“My pay from the Parking Authority was approved each month, audited each month by the BPA commissioners who approved the payroll and finances, as well as an annual audit,” Cresci said disputing the mayor’s claims. “A resolution on July 16, 2007 named me as the overseer of the Parking Authority. My job as business administrator was set up by Mayor Terrence Malloy in October 2007, and affirmed by the full council, 5-0, at the November 2007 meeting. I saved the city millions of dollars in my tenure.”
To fire a non-union professional employee, the commissioners should have provided Cresci a “Rice Notice” and advertised the public meeting under the “Open Public Meetings Act.”
“The commissioners would have had to provide me a synopsis of what was to be discussed, the meeting would have been public, and they would have had to vote publicly. This was not done,” Cresci said. “No commissioner ever complained orally or in writing about the manner in which I conducted my work at the BPA. Not until Anthony D’Elia (the acting city attorney) – as sent by the mayor – asked me the resign and I refused did any of these issues come to the forefront. The excuse was, ‘The mayor should be able to have his guy in there.’”
Cresci said he believes the mayor’s statements came in retaliation for the civil complaint filed in federal court on Monday and served on the BPA executive director the same day.
Cresci said he was hired as the as general counsel at the BPA in February 2007. His duties were expanded on July 16, 2007 after commissioners fired the whole management team.
“Not only do the trustees review and approve the financials each moth, but also the payroll, with a yearly audit by an outside firm,” Cresci said. “There was no mention of anything wrong.”
The chairman also signs the checks issued for the BPA by ADP.
Councilman Ted Connolly was particularly upset with the public statements, saying that Cresci had been told unofficially to “resign or face ruin.”
“I’ve known Peter for a number years as a friend and professionally, I don’t think he would do what the mayor suggested, such as overpaying himself,” he said. “If the mayor felt something was wrong, then we should have moved towards an indictment. [It shouldn’t have been] brought to a public forum to be broadcast on TV.”