Plattekill Police Chief Joseph Ryan was suspended one month without pay by the Town Board after he crashed his police vehicle while in New Jersey on a personal matter on September 1.

Supervisor Jennifer Salemo made a motion to suspend Ryan for one month without pay following an executive session at a special meeting on November 29. The board voted unanimously 5-0 to suspend Ryan without pay starting on November 30.

“He’ll be back Dec. 30,” Salemo told the Southern Ulster Times following the conclusion of the Dec. 7 Town Board meeting. “He was very professional about it (the suspension). He accepted it. He understands the position that we’re all in. It’s unfortunate it came to this. It’s the end of one chapter.”

Ryan, who maintained that he was entitled to travel outside the town as part of his contract, declined to comment on the suspension when contacted on Dec. 8.

“I can’t talk about it because it’s a personnel issue,” Ryan said. “And it’s pending an investigation.”

The action was revealed in minutes that were available in the Town Hall prior to the board’s regular December 7 meeting.

The Nov. 29 special meeting was held in apparent violation of the New York State Open Meetings Law since the news media wasn’t given notice of the session.

The meeting was posted on the town website two days before the Nov. 29 special meeting. It was also posted on a board inside the town hall and on the door, Salemo said.

“Special meetings come up quick and there is not always time to alert the media,” Salemo told the Southern Ulster Times. “This was something that couldn’t wait until the next meeting, so I called for it. We have never notified the media of special meetings that come up quick.”

However, according to Section 104 under Public Notice in the State Open Meetings Law, notice of the Nov. 29 special meeting should have been given to the media under the timeline provided by Salemo.

“Public notice of the time and place of a meeting scheduled at least one week prior thereto shall be given or electronically transmitted to the news media and shall be conspicuously posted in one or more designated public locations at least 72 hours before such a meeting,” the law reads.

Salemo said that she has since notified Tiffany Galligan, the Clerk to the Supervisor, to inform the media of “any further (special) meetings” that are scheduled in addition to the regularly scheduled board meetings.

Following the Dec. 7 meeting, Town Board member Bill Kras said he was glad the board finally wrapped up the investigation of Ryan.

“The process took a little longer than all of us would have liked it to have,” Kras said. “But we did come to a conclusion finally. I’m happy that we were able to close that chapter and just continue to move forward and work on things.”

Asked if he thought a one-month suspension without pay was sufficient for Ryan’s actions, Kras said the town “had to work within the parameters of what we have. Obviously, there’s civil service contracts and the PBA. I think it was a step in the right direction.”

In other news, Salemo said Ben Williamson was hired as the town’s new bookkeeper for a salary of $41,558. He will replace Monique Morano, who resigned in November.

Plattekill resident Rachel Busher, who made a presentation to the board on March 16 requesting that the town join New York State’s Climate Smart Communities Program, asked what the town had done to reduce the carbon footprint in Plattekill in light of its decision not to join the Climate Smart program.

Salemo said the town is waiting for a grant so it can move forward on Part II of its master plan that will incorporate such topics as energy efficiency.

Busher said she wasn’t happy that the board didn’t contact her to explain their decision not to join the program.

“They didn’t contact me or follow up,” she said, “I did email them a number of times to find out what was going on. I read of their decision in the newspaper. I felt dismissed. I think it’s good that they’re going to put something in the master plan, but I still think that they’re missing out on having an entire committee work for them to get grant money to move Plattekill forward.”