CORTLAND — Residents are angry and concerned that the city still has not hired a service director.

More than 30 people attended Monday’s council meeting, where one of the main questions was why there is no service director. The previous interim service director Shawn Ratican’s contract expired Aug. 31 and he is no longer working for the city. Former service director Kim Blasco left in January for a position in Boardman Township in Mahoning County, and Ratican took her place.

Resident Rita Dodd said the city’s charter requires there to be a service director.

Councilwoman Kathy Fleischer said after much discussion at several meetings about the service director position, the job description should be reviewed and perhaps rewritten.

Council President Kevin Piros said there were three candidates that Mayor Deidre Petrosky interviewed and an offer was made to one of the candidates for the service director position.

“I have not heard anything official of what has become of that. I will contact the mayor and ask about the offer and what is the plan if the person offered the job does not take it,” Piros said.

He said an outside agency may need to be hired to help with the search.

“We are getting into the fall and winter and need to have someone in the service director position. We need that person on board soon,” Piros said.

Residents said they had questions for Petrosky about the service director position but she left the meeting before the public comments portion of the meeting.

Resident Joe Ciulla said there were 15 applicants for the position, yet the city still can’t find someone. Piros said there were three finalists interviewed from the 15 who applied.

Petrosky was at the meeting until all council action and official business was completed and then issued a statement responding to comments made about her by some residents at the last meeting, stating, “Let me be clear. The ordinances, resolutions and minutes are factual documents. However, the narrative, allegations and innuendos attached to those documents are not factual. This is how miniformation spreads. This is people misleading the public. Plain and simple. The truth matters and I will continue to stand firmly on it.”

Petrosky said some residents made “untrue statements” at the meeting. She said at the last meeting, she responded to 17 “untrue statements’ and at Monday’s meeting, she responded to 13 more.

She welcomed anyone from the public who wanted to discuss something directly with her to contact her office.

Resident Jerry Bayus said he had questions for Petrosky

“I believe meetings should be conducted in public and on the record. She leaves and avoids being asked questions. She should stay here and not leave,” he said.

Councilman Jim Bradley agreed that Petrosky should stay and answer questions.

PAY INCREASES

In other business, council voted to approve pay increases for nonunion department heads and other employees.

Finance Director Patty Gibson said the eight positions will receive around 5% pay increases each year of the contract, which is retroactive to Oct. 1, 2024, and runs until Sept. 30, 2027.

The current pay of the positions as of October 2023 are finance director, $69,494; police chief, $71,317; fire chief, $72,494; assistant finance director, $26.66 per hour; administrative assistant, $20.46 per hour; utility administrator, $23.91 per hour; police / finance administrative clerk, $20.46 per hour; and clerk of council, $26.66 per hour.

Officials said the contracts have been worked on for more than a year.

Councilman John Picuri said he voted “no” not because he is against the raises, but because the motions were all being passed as emergencies.

“I feel the negotiating for these contracts has been going on for quite awhile. I can’t justify seeing them passed as emergencies,” he said.