Only campaign rival, outgoing alderman’s assignments changed
By Michael S. Hoey
Correspondent
A Delavan alderman believes his demotion on Common Council committees is payback for seeking election against the mayor.
Mayor Mel Nieuwenhuis appointed Alderman Ryan Schroeder, who lost a bid for mayor against Nieuwenhuis April 1, to the council’s Public Works Committee and Library Board. Schroeder had been on the Finance and General Operations committees.
Nieuwenhuis replaced Schroeder on the Finance Committee and General Operations Committee, the members of which also serve on the Personnel Committee, with outgoing Alderman Mary O’Connor, who is moving to Janesville. Schroeder was appointed to the Public Works Committee and the Library Board – assignments O’Connor previously held.
Nieuwenhuis changed no other alderman’s committee assignments at the council’s organizational meeting April 15 with the exception of replacing Alderman Chris Phillips with Schroeder on the Lake Comus Protection and Rehabilitation District, which Schroeder said rarely meets.
“The mayor has a long history of being politically vindictive,” Schroeder said. “He had gotten away from it in recent years.”
Nieuwenhuis denied any of his committee appointments were politically motivated.
Alderman Gary Stebnitz said he does not see anything unusual in most of the committee assignments but said it is strange that Schroeder was removed from the Finance Committee after working with him for four years on that committee.
“It seemed a bit strange, but it is the mayor’s prerogative,” he said. “I don’t know if it was political.”
Stebnitz said he is happy with his committee assignments, none of which changed from last term.
Alderman Bruce DeWitt, chairman of the Finance Committee, had no comment on whether he thinks Schroeder’s removal from the Finance Committee was political.
Alderman Jeff Johnson said he does not think the mayor’s appointments were politically motivated and said the mayor has the power to appoint who he wants where he wants.
Alderman Chris Phillips could not be reached for comment.
Finance Committee
Schroeder took particular exception with being removed from the Finance Committee because he said it is one of the most important committees the city has. Schroeder said he has 13 years of experience on the Finance Committee and he felt he and fellow committee members Stebnitz and DeWitt had developed a smooth system.
Nieuwenhuis said he does not believe Schroeder served 13 years on the Finance Committee, but Schroeder said in his 14 years on the council, he has only been off the Finance Committee for a portion of one term.
City Clerk Sue Kitzman said the city does not keep records on years of service on committees.
O’Connor has just two years of experience and won’t be with the committee throughout the entire budget process. O’Connor is getting married May 31 and will resign her seat on the council and move to Janesville.
Nieuwenhuis said any alderman could leave during the year, and he needn’t worry about that when he makes committee assignments. He said O’Connor is not new to the committee and will do fine. Whoever replaces her can be moved to another committee if finance is not the best fit, he said.
O’Connor said she did not request being placed on the Finance Committee but will do her best while she is on it. While she will not be around at the end of the budget process, O’Connor said she will contribute to the preliminary work and its timeline.
Because she was uncertain how long she would remain on the council, she asked Nieuwenhuis not to make her the chairman of any committee, and he honored that request.
Schroeder said the mayor should sit down with each alderman to discuss committee assignments before making them, and that is what he would have done if he were elected mayor. He said the mayor has never asked him for input on committee assignments.
Nieuwenhuis said he has at times asked aldermen for input on committee assignments but said he did not talk with Schroeder this time.
“Sometimes an alderman will voice a preference, but most say, ‘Put me wherever you need me to be,’” Nieuwenhuis said.
DeWitt said O’Connor has served on the Finance Committee before, and committee assignments are one of the powers and privileges of being mayor.
Nieuwenhuis said O’Connor did a fine job on the Finance Committee previously. Her background in the military included experience in finance.
Meeting attendance
Schroeder also said O’Connor missed several meetings as chairman of the Public Works Committee.
O’Connor said she has missed a few due to her job in health care.
“I can’t just leave the patients,” she said. “It’s the nature of the beast.”
O’Connor said Schroeder also has missed some meetings. Nieuwenuis said O’Connor has not missed many meetings and Schroeder has missed some including the last Personnel Committee meeting.
Schroeder said the last personnel committee meeting he is aware of was on Feb. 27, and meeting minutes show Schroeder was present for that meeting. Overall Schroeder said he has never missed a regular council meeting and has missed no more than two special council meetings and no more than five committee meetings in 14 years on the council.
City Clerk Sue Kitzman said the city does not keep attendance records for meetings, so she could not verify how many meetings anyone has missed.
An analysis of minutes for meetings posted on the city’s website from April 2012 to the present shows O’Connor missed a Public Works meeting Feb. 25 and three special council meetings July 9, Nov. 19 and March 4. She also missed Library Board meetings July 12 and Aug. 9, 2012; Feb. 14, July 8 and Dec. 9, 2013; and March 15.
Schroeder did not miss any regular council meetings, General Operations or Finance committee meetings but missed two special council meetings Oct. 29, 2012, and Feb. 18.
Public Works, library
Schroeder also took issue with being named to the Public Works Committee as its junior member. Stebnitz was named chairman and Alderman Chris Phillips was named vice chairman after serving on the council for just one year. Schroeder has served as that committee’s chairman in the past.
Nieuwenhuis said the assignments to Public Works were his decision, and he had no further comment.
Schroeder was also named to the Library Board, which meets at 4 p.m. Schroeder said Nieuwenhuis knows it will be difficult for him to make those meetings because he works in Madison.
“I love the library, but it will be hard for me to serve on that board,” he said. Nieuwenhuis said anyone who serves on the Library Board has the same issue making the 4 p.m. meeting time. He said the board has been encouraged to change the time in the past but has resisted. Schroeder is free to try again, he said.
Nieuwehuis said the state Legislature is out of session and will not meet again until January, so Schroeder’s job as chief of staff to state Rep. Josh Zepnick should not keep him from attending in the short-term.
Schroeder said the Legislature will most likely be called into special session to deal with voter identification issues and will meet well before January and his job requires him to be in Madison Monday through Friday regardless of if the Legislature is in session.
“The Library Board has some big decisions to make,” Nieuwenhuis said. “They must not be important to him if he is more concerned with scheduling.”
Best for city
Schroeder said Nieuwenhuis has always claimed to be non-political as mayor and he campaigned for the April 1 election on doing what was best for the city. He said the committee assignments are not in the best interests of the city.
“It is best for the city to have the people with the best strengths in the places those strengths will be utilized the most,” he said. “It is unfortunate to me, but more importantly it hurts the city.”
Nieuwenhuis said Schroeder campaigned on a need for change in the city during the mayoral race, so he made some changes.
“Mary was on Finance and was moved to Public Works (in the past) and she didn’t complain,” he said.
Nieuwenhuis also pointed out Stebnitz was moved to chairman of the Public Works Committee this year. O’Connor was chairman but asked not to head any committees because of her impending departure.
Schroeder said the mayor has explained questionable committee changes in the past by saying he likes to move people around to give them experience on different committees. However, no appointments were changed this year except flip-flopping his and O’Connor’s assignments.
Nieuwenhuis faced the same criticism in 2010 when he was accused of banishing former aldermen Dave Kilkenny and the late Ron Siedelmann, who ran against Nieuwenhuis for mayor that year, to the less desirable committees and appointing his supporters to the prime slots.
Nieuwenhuis said he likes to change things up on committees and didn’t do anything different this year than in the past.
“When people stay with one thing too long and don’t serve in other areas they are not well-rounded,” he said.
Schroeder also said several aldermen have served on the same committees for years. Stebnitz, for example, has served on the Water and Sewer Commission for four years, and Johnson has served on the Delbrook Golf Commission and the Plan Commission for close to 10 years.
Nieuwenhuis said he does not have to change everything.
Stebnitz said he can’t recall specific changes Nieuwenhuis has made to committee assignments in his four years on the council.
Nieuwenhuis said resident John Scherer was thanked for 10 years of service on the Police and Fire Commission at the organizational meeting.
“He said ‘I serve at the pleasure of the mayor,’” Nieuwenhuis said. “I wish more people had that attitude.”
