Mailing delivered to some in Pelham calls for merger of town’s two villages
One side of the flyer sent by former Pelham Town Supervisor Michael Treanor.
Former Pelham Town Supervisor Michael Treanor said he mailed flyers advocating for the merger of the villages of Pelham and Pelham Manor in order to “enlighten people.” The flyers arrived in some mailboxes around Pelham Thursday.
“I accept contributions,” said Treanor when asked how he was funding the campaign. The “flyer went to everyone in the Manor and some over the border in the Village of Pelham depending on postal routes.”
One side of the card said, “Municipal government in Pelham was designed in the 19th century to meet the needs of the 19th century. It is redundant, inefficient and expensive.” On other side was displayed a Nov. 6 letter to the editor to the Pelham Examiner from Treanor in which he advocated for merger.
(Though the flyer included the Pelham Examiner’s nameplate, the Examiner neither endorsed nor participated in the mailing.)
“I think unification should be the goal of each of the 17 incumbent municipal officials,” Treanor wrote in the reprinted letter. “Having two or three of everything in the smallest town in the state of New York is inefficient and expensive. I know the very substantial benefits of unification from my years in village and town government. But it is my attitude that animates me.”
The flyers were printed on 8.5 x 11 inch shiny cardstock, with a bulk mailing indicia and no mailing or return label.
In the past, Pelham Manor Mayor Jennifer Monachino Lapey and other members of her board, all elected on the Republican line, have shot down the idea, stating it would mean higher taxes for those in Pelham Manor. Village of Pelham Mayor Chance Mullen, a Democrat, has said there would be savings.
Nonetheless, the issue has not been seriously considered by politicians in either of the villages for decades. The Village of North Pelham merged with the Village of Pelham in 1975. The Town of Pelham has one school district, one recreation department and one court system.
Zoe is a graduate of the Pelham Memorial High School class of 2021. Aside from her work at the Examiner, she competes in the high jump for the track and...
