Ward 2 Councilor and City Council President Ralph J. Figy (WNG File Photo)
WESTFIELD – Newly elected City Council President Ralph J. Figy mailed out his committee assignments over the weekend to council members, resulting in new chairs and new members for many of the committees as compared to last year.
“I am truly humbled by the trust and respect that my fellow councilors showed by electing me to the position of President,” Figy said.
At-large Councilor Cindy C. Harris retains her chairmanship of the Personnel Action Committee, with Ward 6 Councilor William Onyski returning, and At-large Councilor Brent B. Bean, II taking Figy’s seat.
Ward 4 Councilor Michael Burns will continue to chair the Business Development Committee, with At-large Councilors Dave Flaherty and Nicholas J. Morganelli, Jr. joining him for the first time.
At-large Councilor Matthew Emmershy will continue heading Charter & Rules, joined by Onyski and newly elected Ward 5 Councilor Leslie D. LeFebvre.
Ward 3 Councilor Andrew K. Surprise remains as chair of Government Relations, with Harris returning and joined by Ward 1 Councilor Mary Ann Babinski. Babinski remains as chair of Natural Resources, with new members Harris and LeFebvre.
The other committees have new leaders. Onyski will chair Legislative & Ordinance on which he served under Figy. Morganelli will remain on the committee, and the two will be joined by Burns.
The Finance Committee, previously chaired by At-large Councilor Dan Allie, will now be chaired by At-large Councilor Brent B. Bean, II; joined by Allie and At-large Councilor John J. Beltrandi, III.
Beltrandi will chair the License Committee, joined by Flaherty and Emmershy, all three new to the committee. Babinski will chair Public Health, with Allie returning and Burns coming on board; and Allie will chair City Properties, joined by LeFebvre and returning member Surprise.
Zoning, Planning and Development will be chaired by Morganelli, who will be joined by Emmershy and Surprise, another new committee composition. Flaherty will chair Long Range Finance, on which he served last year, joined by Beltrandi and Figy.
Figy said he did not solicit input for the committees, but did try to honor requests that were made. “I tried to put Councilors on committees where I perceived their strengths were,” he said.
Almost half of the council liaisons were also changed; with Harris assigned to the Cultural Council, Burns to the Fire Department, Bean to Gas & Electric, Emmershy to Landfill, Waste & Recycling and Off-Street Parking; Surprise to Library, and LeFebvre to Public Works and Water & Sewer. All other council liaisons remain the same as last year.
“Some of the liaison assignments were dictated by the council rules based on who is on which committee,” Figy said, adding, “I firmly believe that there is not a problem that this council cannot resolve.”
