Council Denies Its Mind is Made Up on Valley Hearing

Citing a recent article that ran in The Record, Valley Hospital counsel Charles Collins wrote a letter to the council that "intimates" there is a perception the village's five elected officials "predetermined" its vote on Valley, according to a statement read by Mayor Keith Killion at Monday night's Valley "H-Zone" hearing.

The council has said it will not be making comments to the press regarding the divisive hearing process.

Killion's Monday night statement is as follows:

“I’d like to advise the public that through its attorney, the Council received last Friday a letter from Charles Collins, counsel for Valley Hospital, making reference to an article that appeared in The Record on Tuesday, September 13. In his letter, Mr. Collins intimates that there is a perception the Council has predetermined its position regarding the proposed amendment to the Master Plan as it pertains to the Hospital Zone.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

The Council has taken great pains to make sure the process utilized in its review of the testimony and exhibits before the Planning Board is fair and open, and its decision to open these meetings for comment from the public provides any party with the opportunity to make its position and reasoning known to the Council.

Throughout the long and contentious process taken up by this matter since 2006, the elected officials of this Village have refrained from committing an official opinion as a member of the Council on this issue.

We will continue to proceed in this manner until we conclude our process and will not be influenced by any alleged perception, whether it be written in the press, discussed at a meeting or communicated in a written correspondence.

it is fundamental in the American system of democracy that as a candidate for an elected office, you are able to express your views on issues you may need to address if elected to advise the voters of your reasoning and opinions on the specific matters and then, if elected, participate in the legislation or decision process on the same issues discussed during the campaign. There are court decisions, both State and Federal, that back this up.”