CAPE MAY – Zack Mullock is one of two new members of the Cape May City Council. Elected in November, along with Stacy Sheehan, Mullock almost immediately began to push for a change in how the city appoints members to advisory committees.
A resolution he tried to steer through council March 5, did not pass, which left Mullock shaking his head.
Mullock had the support of Sheehan, but lost the votes of Mayor Clarence Lear and Deputy Mayor Patricia Hendricks. With Shaine Meier absent from the meeting, the 2-to-2 tie was enough to deny passage of the resolution.
Mullock said he wanted a commitment, by resolution, from council that all new advisory committees would be announced and membership solicited through an open process listed on the city’s website. “If I have those two things, I will rewrite this any way you want,” Mullock said.
Hendricks said the informal process already in place, which includes a full council vote on membership, was working well. “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it,” Hendricks said.
Some citizens who spoke on the issue appeared to agree that the existing process did not need formalization in a resolution.
For Mullock, the resolution was intended to ensure that new committees would be announced and publicized before the membership was settled. “That has not happened yet,” Mullock said.
