HomeCity Government NewsKneier Says Recall Argument ‘Unfounded;’ Efforts Increase

Kneier Says Recall Argument ‘Unfounded;’ Efforts Increase

by Winston Chua

Recall proponents trying to remove Dennis Kneier from his seat on the San Marino City Council have stationed signing areas during the weekends at the Virginia Road entrance to Lacy Park to help collect the 2,143 signatures they will need to establish a recall election.

“It all started out with bike lanes on Lorain Road,” said Dale Pederson, who explained that the recall efforts are about more than dog excrement. “But it has gone on to include changes at Lacy Park, the dog park, the farmers market and the parklet next to the Rotary Clock.”

Councilman Kneier has repeatedly said that those projects are not of his making.

“They’re trying to tag me with things that haven’t even come to the Council,” said Kneier, who explained that the dog park was an Eagle Scout-initiated project and that the bicycle and pedestrian master plan was initiated at the request of the traffic commission. “It’s improper and unjust to put these positions in my realm.”

Pederson, a longtime Lorain Road resident and member of the committee of twenty five or so who are part of the effort to recall the Councilman, tells The Tribune that there will be people at the park from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon on the weekends. Signature collectors have been at Lacy the past three weekends and Pederson says “lots of signatures” have already been gathered.

The required signatures must be collected by October 20 and have 30 days – not including holidays or weekends – to be verified.

Councilman Dennis Kneier says he has received a plethora of backing from his constituents.

“I have received hundreds of expressions of support and encouragement and greatly appreciate all of those,” Kneier said.

There are people in the community, however, who are upset by the planned future expenditures of the City.

“If the Councilman stays in office, he’ll push his agenda,” said recall committee member John Wolf, who estimates that more than 500 recall signatures have been collected. “The cost of the items on his agenda are greater than the cost of an election.”

Kneier is scheduled to term out on November 2015. The earliest a recall election can take place, if official, verified signatures are gathered, is in March of 2015.

If there is a recall election, it would consist of two parts: whether or not to recall the Councilman and who should take his place.

Should the proper number of signatures be verified, a notice of election would be published and candidates would in December be able to file for candidacy.

If Councilman Kneier is replaced, the newly elected councilperson would term out on November 2015.

The recall committee will be discussing other possible collection locations, including the post office and other public gathering spots.

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