COLUMBUS – Columbus Town Councilman Bruce Vermeulen brought Supervisor Tom Grace to court Monday, requesting that Judge Jeffrey Tait compel Grace to sign a contract with the Unadilla Valley Ambulance Corp. for service as well as a Mutual Aid agreement with the county.
The order to show cause was served to Grace last week and he filed an affidavit response the beginning of this week.
Tait listened to both Grace, who represented himself, and Albany attorney Terrence Hannigan, representing Vermeulen, before announcing that he would review all reports filed and make a decision by the end of the week.
A resolution for the contract in question was presented at a town board meeting on April 12 which passed 3-2. At that time, Grace reviewed the contract and declined to sign.
In an interview the next day, he defended his decision, stating: “It is incomplete and I cannot in good conscience sign something that doesn’t represent the full agreement.”
Grace said the agreement was lacking a cost to the town, an effective date, and payment schedule.
During the following board meeting on May 10, Vermeulen presented another contract, this one with the information complete. Grace, however, claimed it was “substantially different” and refused to sign without a separate resolution.
