We know that something happened, probably something big, at the mystery meeting held last evening in the Good Shepherd Community Center. But, cloaked in secrecy, the specific topic – or topics – remain a secret.
by David Stone
The Roosevelt Island Daily News
The only good reason for tuning in to RIOC’s “Special Board Meeting” was an opportunity for reading the tea leaves. We do that a lot because RIOC is so far over the top in secrecy, often all we have to work with is best guesses.
Even though it’s routine, there is no viable reason for this level of secrecy. It’s not even state policy, and the result – making RIOC look untrustworthy – is hardly worth all the effort.
Yet, it persists.
Something Happened: Reading the Tea Leaves
Just calling a special meeting on very short notice was a clue, but there were others, although not enough for reaching conclusions.
Who showed up?
That was our main focus, and the clues were significant.
First, in a rarity that’s now become common, Homes and Community Renewal Commissioner RuthAnne Visnauskas chaired the meeting. Before the turmoil over CEO Shelton Haynes and Chief Counsel Gretchen Robinson erupted, she’d sent surrogates for years. Her last appearance in memory was presiding over replacing Susan Rosenthal with Haynes in 2020.
Possibly bigger still were the absences. Seats designated for Haynes and Robinson, who are suing RIOC, the Governor’s office and several others, were empty. No one explained their absences.
The only non-board member present was Assistant Chief Counsel Gerard Ellis. Every board member attended, although Fay Christian departed early.
What the tea leaves say: At least some, if not all the business at hand was about Haynes and Robinson, but there were no clues beyond that.
Other Hints
The expressed reasons for ducking under the cover of executive session – where the public and press are kicked out – were unusually specific.
- They would discuss pending litigation, and…
- An employee situation would be on the secret agenda.
Normally, the board lumps these two together as an excuse for turning off the lights, but this separation seemed deliberate.
Significantly, with everyone else shut out, the executive session dragged on for over an hour and a half. There was a lot to chew.
When the cameras resumed streaming video and the public returned, Visnauskas led the board straight into closing up.
Finally…
In the next several days, we may learn more, either through private conversations or public actions. Big as this meeting may have been, it may have been nothing more than a passage without an immediate conclusion.
Or, who knows?
A Different Kind of Bet
For years, Roosevelt Island did not behave like a system constrained by limits. Internally, the budget was often treated less as a boundary and more as a reservoir to be used.
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