Trafford Council picks new president, names chief, resumes search for manager
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There’s another new borough council president, a new title for the commanding police officer and a renewed search for a borough manager in Trafford.
It was a busy first 15 minutes during council’s meeting Tuesday night.
After the maneuvering, council made Jay Race its third board president in the past two weeks and designated Carmen Disso the first police chief in a decade.
Council voted unanimously to pick Race as president because Dennis Hockenberry relinquished the gavel just 12 days after becoming president during a disputed special meeting. Hockenberry, Kris Cardiff, Pete Ledwich and Mike Mellon voted on March 26 to strip Henry Schultz of the presidency because Schultz had argued with audience members at the March 3 meeting.
Race, Schultz and Casey Shoub didn’t attend the special meeting, which Race and Shoub criticized as lacking public notice about the business the others planned to take.
Hockenberry said he didn’t want to be a distraction as president. He said he hopes his decision to step aside will bring council together. Race pledged to restore transparency and blasted what he described as secret meetings of the councilmen who ousted Schultz.
Though borough officials long have referred to Disso informally as chief, his promotion as part of a new labor contract retroactive to Jan. 1 makes him the first chief since David Bossar was suspended in November 2004. Disso has been with the department since 1998.
Neither council nor Disso will be working with Rae Ann Tronetti, whom council offered the manager’s position to last month. She declined the offer, which leaves council to decide whether to hire from the dozen other applicants or advertise the opening again, Race said.
Virginia Finnegan, who has been manager on a part-time basis since last summer, is leaving the borough on Thursday.
Chris Foreman is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 412-871-2363 or cforeman@tribweb.com.