Shuffling of the makeup of the City of Newburgh Districting Commission continued at the panel’s May 22 meeting with the resignation of Tammie Hollins and the appointment of Thomas J. Murphy to fill the seat vacated by Isaac Diggs, who has declined to serve.

A replacement for Hollins is to be made at the commission’s next meeting, at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, July 10. Each member of the City Council has nominated one person to the commission – and those five selected the remaining two members from a master list. It wasn’t revealed who had nominated Hollins, but that council member will be asked to submit a replacement nominee.

Meetings have also been scheduled for July 24, Aug. 14 and 28. All meetings are to be held in the City Council Chambers at City Hall at 83 Broadway.

Election of a chairman and co-chairman of the commission was delayed until the full commission is present. The commission is now comprised of Nora Confresi, Arreda Cotton, Janet Gianopoulos, Chris Knasiak, Jason Nordland and Thomas Murphy.

The task before the Districting Commission is to suggest boundaries for four districts that will be roughly equal in population. The electorate of the City of Newburgh overwhelmingly approved the district (or ward) system at the general election this past November. Voters in each of the four new districts will elect one council member in November 2012, resulting in a seven-member council to be seated in January 2013.

Mayor Judith Kennedy and Council members Cedric Brown and Gay Lee are serving four-year terms of office through the end of 2015. The terms of the four council members elected this November will extend through the end of 2017. In order for current council members Regina Angelo and Curlie Dillard to continue serving, they would have to live in and be elected from one of the four new districts.

For all intents and purposes, the offices now held by Angelo and Dillard will just “go away” this coming January.

By ALLAN GAUL
agaul@tcnewspapers.com