PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A City Council subcommittee is in favor of giving Mayor Linda Tyer the ability to consider contracting with a legal firm as city solicitor or hiring a staff person.

 

The Ordinance & Rules Committee on Monday debated the language for about an hour. Currently, the mayor has a contract with the firm Donovan & O'Connor to provide legal services. The contract was viewed as temporary while the administration considers long-term options. 

 

"What we want to do is to allow us some flexibility in how we are represented," Tyer said, adding that in the coming months the city would concurrently issue a request for proposals for firms as well as interview candidates to see "what the talent pool is" for a staff position.

 

Donovan & O'Connor served the city in that position for six years under former Mayor James Ruberto. The firm was replaced with Kathleen Degnan by former Mayor Daniel Bianchi. And now, Tyer has brought the company back temporarily until the administration makes a decision for the long term.

 

The mayor brought new city code language to the subcommittee that would more clearly allow her to pursue both avenues and ultimately decide on one or the other.

 

City Councilor at Large Melissa Mazzeo said that type of change has to be done within the charter, instead of by city code. Mazzeo has been vocally in favor of having a staff member in the city solicitor's office and believes the charter specifies that the city solicitor is a department head, thus a staff member.

 

"I felt like you are creating a vacancy by removing the city solicitor department head," Mazzeo said. 

 

Later she added, "there are so many terms that link you to a person and not a firm." Mazzeo said even the current contract with the firm violates the charter because provisions say vacancies need to be replaced within 150 days, less than the six months Donovan & O'Connor is contracted.

 

"If this is the way the mayor wants to go, this is going to be a charter change," Mazzeo said. "We just can't do it by changing the code. Our charter trumps our code." 

 

Mazzeo further went on to say that when Donovan & O'Connor was last contracted, the city spent a total of $732,385 on legal fees and questioned the financial wisdom of a firm. The new contract gives the firm $8,500 a month to be on retainer but additional legal fees could be incurred beyond that.

 

Tyer responded by saying when dividing that figure up over six years, it is still less expensive than hiring an staff member and an assistant and a contract excludes the city from pension liabilities and health insurance costs.

 

Ward 6 Councilor John Krol circled back to the discussion by saying the ultimate goal is to "ensure that we truly have competent representation." And the best way to do that is to have as many options as possible to find the right attorney or firm.

 

"We have to leave those options open and I think that is what the mayor is trying to accomplish," Krol said.

 

The subcommittee ultimately took the lead from attorney Fernand Dupere who said most municipalities have contracts with law firms while listing one attorney from the firm as the city solicitor.

 

"Typically there are several attorneys within the law firm that will represent the municipality," Dupere said, saying the firms have attorneys specializing on a number of areas and the lead solicitor delegates the work.

 

The subcommittee adopted language to allow such a move in Pittsfield. Dupere also disagrees with Mazzeo that a charter change is required. 

 

Councilor at Large Peter White said the charter isn't "as clear cut" and there is flexibility in the language to allows a firm instead of a person. Mazzeo, who ultimately was the sole vote against the change, said the move would set a precedent that could lead to other charter provisions being ignored.

 

City Council President Peter Marchetti doesn't sit on the Ordinance & Rules subcommittee but did sit on the Charter Commission. He said he's comfortable with allowing a firm be contracted while a lead attorney is listed as the city solicitor.

 

This hasn't been the first debate about the charter, which was adopted nearly three years ago. Marchetti expressed frustration that a number of the changes haven't been followed, such as the requirement that the mayor submit a capital improvement plan.

 

"I'm kind of getting discouraged that we even did a charter because we don't always follow it," he said. "I'm discouraged that we only follow the provisions that we want to follow."

 

Nonetheless, the code change will now need City Council support.