Image of August 2010 RIOC Board Of Directors Meeting Held At Manhattan Park Community Center
Image of New RIOC President Leslie Torres After Being Appointed By RIOC Board of Directors
Image of those attending August 2010 RIOC Board Meeting

Never knew that the hiring of a RIOC president is a first-come, first-serve process. Hired on the spot w/o evaluating other potential candidates. Nice.

This evening, the RIOC Board of Directors voted to appoint Leslie Torres as the next RIOC President and CEO. She is an excellent choice and I wish her much success in her new capacity. However, I spoke against her appointment, not because she is unqualified or because there was another candidate better suited for the job. There is legislation, passed by both houses of the State Legislature and awaiting the Governors signature to become law that would require this Board to interview for and to hire a new President, not just endorse the Governors choice. They would be obliged to interview at least three candidates and to present them to the community prior to offering employment. I urged the Board to postpone their vote until the Governor had acted on the bill, expected by the end of the month, possibly by invoking Roberts Rules of Order and tabling the motion.

I understand that the Board had a hard choice; take the path of least resistance and hire Ms. Torres, a qualified aspirant, or honor the spirit of a bill that may or may not be signed into law in the next few weeks. RIOC is likely to remain the administrator of this community for the next 58 years, until the Master Lease expires. While Ms. Torres may prove to be an excellent choice, there is no guarantee that future Governors will offer excellent future RIOC Presidents. In the 26 years RIOC has existed, the Board could have hired Presidents through their own efforts, but in fact, they never have. This legislation requires them to do so.

This summer, we learned that this Board, two-thirds of whom were chosen by election within this community, could fire a President. It is unclear whether they have the intestinal fortitude to hire one. With Ms. Torres appointment, we are unlikely to have another chance to empower the RIOC Board for years to come, regardless of whether Gov. Paterson signs the bill into law. As one of those who created the election process that created an elected Board, I have to wonder why we bothered.

These Board seats have finite terms and will come up for re-ratification at some point. Like any other elected official seeking relection, you must judge them based on their voting record. Heres how this Board voted on this appointment: the ex officio members, Brian Lawlor, Chair and MaryBeth Labate, representing the Division of the Budget voted in favor, as did resident members Faye Christian, Kathie Grimm, Jon Kalkin, David Kraut, and Howard Polivy. Margie Smith, like me, an activist who has worked on writing the legislation and creating the RIOC Board elections, abstained, and Michael Shinozaki was not present.

Much effort has gone into the slow, incremental improvements in the long slog toward a democratic administration of Roosevelt Island. We have taken advantage of every opportunity that has come our way, even when the outcome was in question. A case in point: we were given no guarantees that the Governor would appoint a single winner in our Island-wide RIOC Board plebiscites, but we created and mounted the elections nonetheless. Currently, six of the nine members were chosen by you, the residents, through two referendums. The Board must take on the tasks, accept the additional power, make the tough decisions. This is what we expect of them. I am disappointed that they didnt see the long-term ramifications of their hasty appointment. It would have meant so much more had they waited to act within a law that will empower them and enfranchise us.

Please, let no one doubt for a minute what huge progress was made tonight. It was gratifying beyond my ability to say, that we were in a position of entirely rejecting Ms. Torres’ candidacy if she had proved or shown incompetent. Of course we did not reject her: her experience and her resum made clear that we would be hard-pressed to find a better candidate. But if there had been the slightest indication that Ms. Torres was being “foisted” on us in any way shape or form, I hope it is clear that this RIOC Board would have vetoed her in a New York minute. And that is a huge step forward.

Image Of Ms. Torres Mingling With Residents and RIOC VP Martinez After Meeting