BANK, SHEER,$EYMOUR & HASHMALL

ATTORNEYS AT LAW
CROSSWEST OFFICE CENTER

399 KNOLLWOOD ROAD

WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK 10603

MICHAELS. BANK (914) 761-9lll
NORMANSHEER
DANIEL A. SEYMOUR FAX (914) 761-9262
JAY B. HASHMALL
January 11, 2019

Sent via NYCEF and Federal Express

Hon. Susan Cacace
Justice of the Supreme Court

County Courthouse
111 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd
White Plains, NY 10601

Re: Matter of Thomas v. Walker, Index No. 67119/2017

Matter of Thomas v. Reynolds, Index No. 64764/2018

Your Honor:

This law firm represents Deborah Reynolds, the Comptroller of the City of Mount

Vernon, in the above two proceedings before you. The Respondent Maureen Walker, was her

predecessor in office.

This letter is in response to the letter of Adam Browser, Esq. of Ruskin Moscou
Faltischek PC, attorneys for Mayor Thomas dated January 10, 2019.

As the Court is aware, the four attorneys representing the Mayor and the undersigned

held a conference before you on December 5, 2018 in order to settle these matters or at least

narrow the issues. On behalf of the Comptroller, I made several offers to settle at that time.

Although we made little progress, I agreed to meet again with the Mayor's lawyers to continue to

try to settle, some or all of the disputes.

I then met with one of the Mayor's attorneys, Jeffrey Buss, Esq. in my office on

December 10, 2018 for over an hour. I made several additional offers to settle both pending
matters and discussed with Mr. Buss the various matters which have now been included in the

Comptroller's Article 78 proceeding bearing Index No. 71021/2018.

Several days after this meeting, I saw Mr. Buss at an unrelated event and reminded him I

was waiting for his response to my settlement offers and he told me he would try to get back to
me the next day if I was planning to be in m office. I said, yes I would be there. I have not heard

back from Mr. Buss since our December 10 meeting-over one month ago.
 I told Mr. Buss at my meeting on December 10, 2018, that if we did not quickly resolve
the issues between our mutual clients, I was going to have to seek judicial intervention on the
various matters now included in the latest Article 78 proceeding. These matters were too serious
to allow to continue. The Mount Vernon taxpayers would suffer irreparable harm.

That is exactly what is happening. Mount Vernon credit rating was suspended on January
3, 2019 by Moody's Investment Services. The city's budget is four (4) months late. It was not

timely submitted on September l't, not approved by the Board of Estimate, there have been no
public hearings and the City Council has not acted. The Mayor has not completed the 2016 and
2017 Urban Renewal Agency audits thus preventing the completion of the combined city audits
and thus the removal of its credit rating. Without an adopted budget for 2019, there are no
appropriations for this year and the Comptroller cannot send out tax bills and collect taxes. The
city's bank accounts have been restrained for a total of $8.6 million dollars by reason of a
judgment entered on 9/18/18 for $4.3 million dollars in a lawsuit lost by Mr. Browser's firm
entitled Gizzo v. City of Mount Vernon, Index No. 51329/2015 in which interest alone is costing
the city over $1100 each day it remains unpaid. Similar to Washington, D.C., Mount Vernon will
have to close down for business and will run out of money.

The Mayor and Corporation Counsel Porcari have an adopted budget for 2018 which
appropriated $175,000 for outside counsel and $100,000 for labor counsel and they have
attempted to expend and obligate the city to pay over $L0 million dollars more than
appropriated for outside counsel and over $300,000 more than appropriated for labor counsel
without even attempting to do a budget transfer.

attorneys'
There is no double standard in the payment of fees as suggested by Mr.

Browser. The Mayor and Mr. Porcari voluntarily chose to use outside counsel to perform tasks
which could be performed by Mr. Porcari and his Law Department, both in defending the city
and in repeatedly suing Ms. Reynolds. Ms. Reynolds, on the other hand, under the long standing
rule by the NY Court of Appeals in Cahn v. Town of Huntington (1972) 29 NY 2d 451, has a
right to employ counsel in the good faith prosecution or defense of any action undertaken in the
public interest and in conjunction with her official duties where the Corporation Counsel refuses
to act or is incapable or disqualified from acting.

Respectfully submitted, .

Jay B. Hashmall
JBH:ta
Cc: all counsel (NYCEF)