CAPE MAY – City Council approved the hiring of a special counsel Feb. 1 to deal with the ongoing controversy surrounding the distribution of Affordable Housing Trust Fund monies as bonuses for several city employees.
By way of a resolution added to the agenda after it became public, the council agreed in a 4-to-1 vote to contract with attorney Vincent Sarubbi, of Archer and Greiner PC, to serve as special counsel in the resolution of the use of funds issue first brought to light in early 2021. Sarubbi served as Camden County prosecutor from July 2002 to March 2006 before joining his present firm.
City resident Jules Rauch urged the council Feb. 1 to move on the issue of recovery of the funds in order to repay them to the trust fund. City Solicitor Christopher Gillin-Schwartz took issue with any suggestion that the city has not taken the issue seriously, saying the city has been working to resolve the matter in the “least impactful way” possible.
“It is a complex matter that requires time and care,” Gillin-Schwartz added.
It was Gillin-Schwartz who pointed out Sarubbi’s past role as a prosecutor.
Mayor Zack Mullock said that the council members had been advised to make no comments on the matter given the legal issues involved. He added a summary of actions the city has taken.
“We were handed this,” Mullock said, referring to the fact that the actions involved in the case predated the start of the current council’s term.
The only vote against the resolution that authorized the special counsel contract came from Council member Shaine Meier, who, like the other members of the council, was not able to explain his vote due to legal advice to refrain from comment.
