NORWICH – With the majority of the incumbents running for Chenango County supervisor again in November, and only a handful of towns up for grabs, it’s time to take a look at attendance at board of supervisors and standing committee meetings.

Following an 18-month perusal, it turns out that it wasn’t an actual supervisor who had the highest number of missed board meetings, but an entire town. The Town of Columbus, home to two of the county’s most prominent businesses, Golden Artist Colors and Agro Farma, went underrepresented in government decisions from February 8, 2010 to January 2011.

Three-term Columbus Supervisor George G. Coates abruptly resigned from office in February of 2010, and wasn’t replaced until the townspeople elected Pamela Weidman, a Democrat, last year to fill the vacancy. She’s missed five meetings so far this year.

Interestingly, Coates has filed a designating petition showing his intent to run under the Independence line in the fall. Weidman has not announced her candidacy.

Otselic’s David J. Messineo had the most missed board and committee meetings of any town or city supervisor. He was absent 15 times from January 2010 through June 2011. Messineo also had the highest number of misses in 2008 and 2009, with 22 combined.

Next was McDonough’s Arrington J. Canor with 14 absences. According to Chenango County Clerk of the Board RC Woodford, Canor’s wife was critically ill for several months in 2010.

Woodford said he was not familiar with the reason for Messineo’s repeated absences.

The next most absent supervisors were: Dolores Nabinger of Bainbridge and James J. McNeil of the City of Norwich, both with nine. Preston Supervisor Peter C. Flanagan followed with seven misses.

Though Coates’ absences in two committees caused gridlock in moving through resolutions having to do with the county’s traffic safety and 911 dispatch departments last year, monthly committee meetings went off for the most part as scheduled during the review period. The Agriculture, Buildings and Grounds Committee was canceled four times, followed by Health & Human Services and the Personnel committees with three misses each, and all for a lack of agenda, not quorum.

The only elected officials with perfect attendance were Board of Supervisors Chairman Richard B. Decker, R-North Norwich, and Town of Sherburne Supervisor Charles Mastro, also a Republican. Decker does not sit on any standing committees, however, and Mastro has only been in office for six months. Mastro filled a vacancy left by William C. Craine, who was elected county treasurer in the fall of 2010.

Supervisors James B. Bays, D-Smyrna, Dennis Brown, D-Pharsalia and Lawrence Wilcox, R-Oxford, each only missed one committee or board meeting.

Chenango County Board of Supervisors’ monthly meetings and standing committee attendance from January 2010 through June 2011 was as follows:

Afton Supervisor Robert D. Briggs - 3 absences

Bainbridge Supervisor Dolores Nabinger - 9 absences

Columbus Supervisor Pamela Weidman (Jan.-June 2011)* - 5 absences

Coventry Supervisor John Phelan - 2 absences

German Supervisor Richard Schlag - 3 absences

Greene Supervisor Jack T. Cook - 4 absences

Guilford Supervisor George Seneck - 2 absences

Lincklaen Supervisor Wayne C. Outwater - 3 absences