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Thursday, December 5, 2013

Sharon shreds; Restaino resigns


Bag lady?

As Plainfield Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs' days in office dwindle, stories are circulating of personnel and other actions at City Hall.

I have heard for weeks now that Mayor Robinson-Briggs was coming in weekends and, with the assistance of her mother, shredding voluminous documents from her two terms as Plainfield's mayor.

At first, I was inclined to be concerned that something important or irreplaceable would be destroyed, Then I realized that any important documents from her administration are most likely preserved by the City Clerk's office.

Perhaps the only items of value that Her Honor is shredding are the multiple copies of resumes and letters of interest submitted over the years by those offering to serve on boards and commissions, but whose offers were never acknowledged.

These folks will have a new opportunity to volunteer under Mayor Mapp, who is not known to misfile documents.

So, shred away, Sharon!

Word in the street is that Acting City Administrator Al Restaino has submitted his letter of resignation. I have not heard if he will stay to the end of the year or if his new job requires him to start before Sharon's term ends. Restaino has worn several hats over the past year or so, including the ACA title, the Director of Administration and Finance, the Director of the Community Development program, and the person handling the supervision of Plainfield Action Services. The City's wage costs will go up as his replacements come on line.

Restaino's departure will leave only one actively serving department head, Eric Jackson, Director of Public Works and Urban Development.

Meanwhile, Mayor Robinson-Briggs must be looking for someone to switch the lights off when the last appointee leaves.



-- Dan Damon [follow]


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5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Was the necessary paperwork submitted for records destruction which must be approved by the State of NJ per the requirements of record retention?

Pat Turner Kavanaugh said...

And, with Trenton Mayor Tony Mack's trial starting 6 Jan, how much longer can we rely on Eric Jackson not to head home to campaign. Although maybe this trial makes Eric a shoo-in. As far as I'm concerned, I wish he would stay.

Anonymous said...

What is she trying to hide?

Anonymous said...

The City of Plainfield should have a proper Records Management policy and program in place that identifies and dictates what record types need to be kept and for how long.It should also dictate a proper Records destruction process so there is documentation of all records destroyed. Records retention should be predicated on State and Federal guidelines. Whomever is responsible for this program within the City should contact the County Association of Records Managers (CARMA) or the National Association of Records Managers (NARMA), both of which have websites available with all the information the City Records Manager would need to know. Shredding records as haphazardly as stated, with family members assisting, is not really the proper procedure to follow, even for non-business type records. We should be managing Plainfield's records with a more business-like approach. Can't wait for Mr. Mapp to clean things up!- Retired Corporate Records Manager & Plainfield resdient

Anonymous said...

Waiting to see if our new mayor believes his cabinent appointments will all live outside plainfield