Halfmoon Township Manager Denise Gembusia has resigned after two years in the position and following recent attempts by some township supervisors to fire her.
Gembusia’s resignation is effective March 31. An item on Thursday night’s Board of Supervisors agenda acknowledging the resignation passed as part of the consent agenda with almost no discussion, save for an apology from Supervisor Bob Strouse for how Gembusia has been treated.
“I would like to apologize directly to Ms. Gembusia for the ill treatment you’ve received by some of the members of this board as well as a few members of this community,” Strouse said.
Gembusia has not responded to phone and email messages seeking comment.
Board Chair David Piper, who at a Feb. 24 meeting made a motion to immediately dismiss Gembusia that ultimately failed, said he was informed that Gembusia had accepted another job.
“She has another job, at least that’s what I was informed of, so she can go off and be happy wherever,” Piper said on Friday.
Strouse, who along with Supervisor Patricia Hartle has repeatedly praised Gembusia’s work and pushed back against efforts to remove her, said on Friday he is “embarrassed and ashamed” of the board for what happened.
“I’m tremendously disappointed to see her go,” Strouse said. “Denise is one of the most organized, professional and logical people I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with. She did a fine job in my opinion in her two-year tenure as township manager. It’s obvious that the behavior of three of the five members of the board toward her has been less than professional. She did not deserve any of this.”
At the end of a lengthy meeting in February that saw a large turnout of residents — many of whom spoke in Gembusia’s defense — Piper addressed an item listed on the agenda as “Manager Action” first by saying he wanted to go into executive session then motioning for Gembusia’s immediate dismissal.
Supervisor Charles Beck joined Piper in voting for her dismissal but Strouse, Patricia Hartle and Ronald Servello voted against.
At the board’s March 10 meeting, Piper and Servello placed an item on the agenda to go into executive session for a personnel matter at the start of the meeting. Gembusia offered her personnel file for public inspection and asked that if the executive session discussion was about her that it be held in open session. Solicitor Zachary Rice advised that the board discuss personnel matters in executive session.
About an hour later, supervisors returned from executive session and members of the public — including planning commission members and former supervisors — again offered praise for Gembusia’s professionalism and work as manager.
Servello ultimately made a motion he described as a “middle ground” to conduct a performance review and corrective action process with Gembusia, though he noted he could “just as easily vote differently.” The board approved that motion 3-2, with Piper and Beck voting no.
Piper said on Friday the board intended to follow through on that process.
“The board majority did decide to do that and Denise chose not to stay,” he said. “It isn’t like she was going to get shoved out the door.”
Beck, Piper and Servello have not disclosed what issues they had with Gembusia, except for one remark by Piper at the February meeting in which he said she was “defiant.”
Piper and Servello declined to provide specifics on Friday, citing confidential personnel matters. Beck could not be reached for comment on Friday afternoon.
“We have five elected officials; three of them were not satisfied with the situation, but Ms. Gembusia decided to go and find employment elsewhere and good for her,” Piper said.
At recent meetings, several residents called the board “dysfunctional” and twice requested that it reorganize with a new chair.
Architect Michael Siggins, who had designed recent municipal building renovations, sent a letter to the township withdrawing a proposal for planned alterations to the building after watching the board’s last three meetings.
“I came away with the opinion that there are some serious issues concerning the way the Board of Supervisors conducts their business for the township and with the citizens of the township,” he wrote. “As it pertains to my professional design services for this current project, I have concluded that the board’s position regarding the details and scope of this project are ill-defined at best. I am also concerned by what I perceive to be a potential for the relationship between the Board of Supervisors and myself to be adversarial and, most importantly, present circumstances that could result in professional liability for me and my consultant.”
Servello, a professional engineer, said at Thursday’s meeting that he’s worked with many architects and has “never received a letter like that.” Servello committed to leading the work for the township for free.
Strouse, meanwhile, says he’s concerned about the direction the board has gone.
“It really concerns me about the intentions of those three individuals as to what they really intend for the future of the township,” Strouse said. “I have a lot of questions that are very unanswered right now.”
He said that he knows of “no plan, no timeline” for replacing Gembusia.
Piper, who formerly served as Halfmoon Township manager, said that the township clerk and treasurer can handle office matters until a new manager is hired. A neighboring township, he added, operates with just a part-time secretary.
Strouse said he believes the board majority wants to shrink township government to cut taxes and that moving forward without a manager is “not grounded in reality.”
“Whatever anyone else says is their own assertion, not the opinion of the board,” Servello wrote in an email response to a question about Strouse’s characterization of the majority members.
“We will replace the manager,” Servello added.
Strouse, meanwhile, said that he appreciated township residents making their voices heard in recent months.
“I appreciate the support of all the folks who have turned out to the meetings for the last two months. That meeting room often sat empty besides the supervisors and staff for meetings,” Strouse said. “I really do appreciate the support being given by members of the community. Some of these things that these [three supervisors] have been trying to do since the beginning of the year are tremendously unpopular with the residents of Halfmoon Township. They may have won an election but they’re supposed to govern for all residents, whether they voted for them or not.”
Halfmoon Township’s Board of Supervisors next meet at 7 p.m. on April 14.
