Vernon councilman resigns

Vernon’s Deputy Mayor Glenn McLaughlin resigned his positions as councilman and second in command by way of a letter addressed to Mayor Austin Carew and Township Manager Melinda Carlton early last week. The letter was received by Township Clerk Robin Kline on May 5, however in it McLaughlin, a Republican, said his resignation was effective as of 3:30 p.m. on April 8. He cited “family obligations” as the reason for his departure from municipal government. The disparity in those dates has generated questions from Vernon residents, according to Kline, who says she’s received a number of phone calls on the matter. Next step Under the municipal vacancy law, the township’s Republican party committee has 15 days from the day McLaughlin filed his resignation with the clerk — May 5 — to submit to the Township Committee the names of three suitable candidates for the post, explained Michael Witt, the township’s attorney. The Township Committee then has 30 days from May 5 to appoint a person from that list. If they do not make a selection, the Republican committee can appoint someone to take the seat. Whoever is chosen will serve through the next election, in November. McLaughlin’s term would have expired on Dec. 31, 2011, so this November someone will run for the remainder of that term: three years. The filing deadline for a municipal candidate to have gotten on the November ballot was 4 p.m. April 6. Zoning issues remain In the recent past McLaughlin has had some difficulty with the township’s zoning regulations. Still unresolved are issues of notification when he built a deck on his property. The township engineer’s office confirms that McLaughlin did not correctly notify the board or get a zoning permit for the project. Since his deck ran beyond the allowable property setbacks, he ran afoul of the ordinances. The issue has yet to be resolved.