Last year’s business stacks this year’s board

After leading the charge to reform how Community Board 8 elects its leadership, Law, Rules & Ethics committee chair Irving Ladimer stepped down from his post just as the new rules went into effect. 

CB 8 was scheduled to elect new members to a few key positions on the board after press time on Tuesday. 

The nominating slate included reassigning chairmanships on three of the board’s 14 committees. The nominating slate as of Tuesday night had Rosemary Ginty as the new chair of the Law, Rules & Ethics committee, Sergio Marquez as chair of Environment & Sanitation and Steve Balicer as chair of Housing.

The changes are a result of Tom Durham not being reappointed to the board as Housing chair and Mr. Ladimer’s decision to step down. Ms. Ginty currently serves as the chair of the Environment & Sanitation committee and was slated to take Mr. Ladimer’s place on the Law, Rules & Ethics committee.

Last year’s process of nominating members to officer and chair positions helped lead to this year’s reappointments. 

Last June, many board members expressed concern about the nominating committee’s procedures because Maria Khury, who served on the five-member nominating committee, voted for herself for CB 8 vice chair.

For years, members of the nominating committee had voted for themselves, but it became controversial when Ms. Khury did so.

Land Use chair Charles Moerdler said the nominating committee’s “sleazy” actions in allowing her to sit on the committee and vote for herself discredited the entire board.

Councilman Oliver Koppell, who favored Steve Froot for the vice chair position over Ms. Khury, called members of the nominating committee and informed them of his position. 

Mr. Koppell nominates community board members to the Borough President’s office, which has the final say on community board appointments, and some people felt he was exerting pressure under the threat of not reappointing them. 

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