Park Project Ends; Sheehan Accepts Vacation Loss As Discipline

CAPE MAY – Cape May City Council’s July 5 meeting began with an update on the Rotary Park improvements.  
Greg Roberts, of the engineering firm Remington Vernick & Walberg, and Curtis Bashaw, of the Fund for Cape May, briefed the council on the project’s status.
Mayor Edward Mahaney thanked Roberts for his firm’s efforts and those of the contractor, Command Company, which resulted in hitting the July 1 deadline even when confronted by an extremely wet month of May.
The park renovations represented a public-private effort partially funded through donations to the Fund for Cape May. Mahaney expressed the city’s appreciation for the financial assistance and called the Park a “welcoming plaza for public events.”
Mahaney noted that the planning for the park restoration began in 2009. He added that the total expense of the $1.8-million project was supported in part through over $500,000 in grants.
Even though initial expectations called for the removal of most of the park’s mature trees, Mahaney said that 10 large, mature trees were saved as a focal point for ongoing landscaping to restore the park’s canopy.
A key objective of the project was to make the park friendly to all. Restoration included full attention to Americans with Disabilities Act guidelines and access for visitors with disabilities.
Council member Shane Meier, who had led an effort to increase access to Cape May’s Post Office, called the effort at the park an “awesome job.”
Mahaney was careful to point out that all memorials in the park before construction have been preserved and will again be displayed. Among them are dedicated benches and the World War I memorial.
Mahaney also spoke of the need for appropriate security in the refurbished park. “The challenge is to ensure that all show proper respect for property,” in the park, he said.
The city plans to hold an opening ceremony but was not ready to announce a date. City Manager Bruce MacLeod did say that July 22 was being considered.
Capt. Robert Sheehan
Responding to a question from Jerry Gaffney during the public comment period, MacLeod acknowledged that police Capt. Robert Sheehan had elected to accept the loss of four days of vacation as the outcome of his recent disciplinary hearing into a firearms qualification issue in 2009. 
Four days suspension was the recommendation of the hearing officer and was imposed by MacLeod as the city’s supervising officer.
Asked about reports that Sheehan will incorporate the suspension into his open lawsuit against the city dating to March 2015, City Solicitor Anthony Monzo replied he had no knowledge of what advice Sheehan’s legal representative may give his client.
Gaffney pressed on the issue of the lawsuit, which Monzo said could potentially extend into 2017. Monzo said that no settlement talks have taken place and that the discovery phase of the suit had been extended into the fall. 
Gaffney pointed to the fact that the November elections could mean that a “different council” would decide the issue.
A recent announcement by retired police lieutenant Chuck Lear that he will seek the needed signatures to challenge Mahaney for the mayor’s position in the November election may set up what could amount to a referendum on the city’s handling of the long-running police department controversy.
Lear was ushered into retirement as part of a settlement of his contest with the city over the use of what the city termed “compensatory time.” One side effect of that controversy was the failure of council to make permanent Sheehan’s position as chief of police.
That action, returning Sheehan to his rank as captain, started a series of incidents that included conflicts with the County Prosecutor and the current lawsuit by Sheehan.
The controversy surrounding the situation with Sheehan had been a source of almost continual public comment at council meetings for months.
The issue has not been as conspicuous at recent meetings and council has shown no inclination to revisit it outside the legal context of the lawsuit.
To contact Vince Conti, email vconti@cmcherald.com.