June 18, 2008
By STEPHEN J. NOVAK
Allegations that Sparta officials unfairly rejected a petition seeking to opt out of mandatory garbage service are baseless, according to a lawsuit response filed by the township.
In the document, attorney Thomas Ryan defends the township clerk's rejection of the petition in April as a legitimate action because the full text of a proposed ordinance -- in this case a rewriting of the December ordinance establishing a municipal garbage service -- was not submitted with the petition as required.
The lawsuit was filed late in April and names Jesse Wolosky, Philip Lid, Aileen Shane and Anne Simkatis as plaintiffs.
In the litigation, they argue the township and Municipal Clerk Miriam Tower infringed on their rights by rejecting a petition due to a "hyper-technical" reading of the law. It asks that the court reverse the decision and the township review the validity of the signatures.
The 69-page petition contained more than 600 signatures. It sought a second referendum on Sparta's municipal garbage service, in which voters could choose whether to allow residents to withdraw from mandatory garbage collection.
The township's response said the suit is frivolous and asks that any legal fees incurred from it be paid by the plaintiffs.
Ryan did not return calls to elaborate on the township's response.
The garbage service issue has polarized Sparta residents since late last year. After several hours of hearing from opponents, the township council voted 3-2 to establish a municipal garbage collection program as a cost-saving measure for residents.
Through a petition, Wolosky was successful in bringing the issue to referendum in March. However, the ordinance establishing the mandatory service was approved by voters.
Since filing the "opt out" lawsuit, Wolosky submitted another, unrelated petition objecting to a salary guide for nonunion township employees approved in April. That petition was rejected and Wolosky and four others last week filed suit against that decision as well.
The same group also is spearheading an effort to recall the three council members who initially voted for the garbage utility in December. The deadlines for the three recall petitions, which require more than 3,000 signatures each, will come up in late July and early August.
