Previously, Thomas worked as a consultant with the Town of Rye for 6 years. “I’ll have to get used to saying “the Village” instead of “the Town,” Thomas joked. Port Chester has been without a clerk since this past summer when Janusz Richards resigned. Assistant Village Clerk Vita Sileo has been filling in. Eager to get the office of the clerk back to normal, Thomas was sworn in on Tuesday, November 3 by Hope Vespia and Vita Sileo. Thomas didn’t have the opportunity to give the Town notice. He’s been putting in two hours a day for the Town to transition and then working his 8 hours for the Village. Luckily for Thomas, both entities have been located at 222 Grace Church Street since the fall of 2014.
A notable task for the new Village Clerk will be gearing up for the elections of Village Trustees next March. All six seats are up for election and will be selected via the cumulative voting system put in place by decree from the U.S. Department of Justice.
Thomas was selected from a starting pool of 90 applicants. Mayor Pilla called the search “exhaustive.” At his appointment, Village Trustee Dan Brakewood talked about how he “had the pleasure of working with Dave while working on the Tools for Change program” that Thomas administered for the Town of Rye. Trustee Sam Terenzi also spoke of the positive relationship he developed with Thomas as accountant for the Town of Rye. “You are now the face of the community,” said Terenzi.
The duties of the Village Clerk include responsibility for the care and custody of all official records and documents of the Village, for protection and preservation of the Village’s past history, administration of all municipal and special elections, the accurate record of Board of Trustee proceedings, actions and documentation of Board of Trustee Meetings, administering the Village’s records management program, receiving and filing claims against the Village, maintenance of the Village Code and providing research and information services to the public and Village personnel.
The Village Clerk’s Office provides a current list of Village Boards and Commissions. Village Board of Trustee Minutes are prepared by the Village Clerk and are the permanent record of proceedings of each Board of Trustee meeting.
Other services that are available in the Village Clerk’s Office include:
Municipal Parking Permits
Alarm Permits
Taxicab Licenses
Freedom of Information
Handicapped Parking Permits
Registrar of Vital Statistics, i.e., Birth Certificates, Death Certificate
Thomas was formally sworn in by Mayor Pilla at the Trustee meeting, on November 16.
Thomas and his wife, Joan has lived in Port Chester since 1989. Thomas will continue his work with the African-American Cemetery in Rye.
Black Westchester
Black Westchester - News With The Black Point Of View is an online news magazine for people of color for Westchester and the Tri- State area of New York at every economic level. Our mission is to promote the concept of “community” through media.
