Compo Pierce nominated to replace Gray on county board, has not accepted position yet

Alex Gault, Watertown Daily Times, N.Y.
·3 min read

Jan. 5—WATERTOWN — Another step has been taken to place city councilwoman Sarah V. Compo Pierce on the Jefferson County Board of Legislators, although Ms. Compo Pierce herself has not appeared to make a decision to accept the position.

On Tuesday, the Jefferson County Board of Legislators received the official nomination for Ms. Compo Pierce from the 13th County District Republican Committee at 4 p.m. The county's regular meetings start at 6 p.m., and Board of Legislators Chairman William W. Johnson said there simply wasn't enough time to put a resolution to accept the nomination on the agenda.

"We really should have voted last night," Mr. Johnson said Wednesday. "But there being no recommendations until four o'clock in the afternoon, we didn't have the time."

Instead, the resolution has been placed on the agenda for a special meeting set for 6 p.m. on Jan. 17, just before the county's General Services Committee meeting. That meeting was already scheduled before the nomination was advanced.

Ms. Compo Pierce said she was considering taking the seat vacated by new Assemblyman Scott A. Gray in early December, about a month before Mr. Gray was set to leave the county board and begin representing the 116th Assembly District in Albany. But since then, she has not committed to taking the position, and did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday.

Jefferson County Republican Committee Chairman Donald G.M. Coon, III said that the 13th District committee forwarded Ms. Compo Pierce's name on Tuesday after a meeting, but that doesn't assure that she will end up taking the seat.

Mr. Coon said he thinks she will take the seat, but he understands she is being pressured to stay on the Watertown City Council. She would have to resign from City Council in order to take the county board seat.

The council is facing a number of controversial issues, especially over a deal for the city to purchase a golf club and course in Thompson Park for $3.4 million, where Ms. Compo-Pierce and Mayor Jeffrey M. Smith have remained opposed while the other three council members have united to support the purchase. Many votes in city meetings have split 3-2, with Ms. Compo Pierce and Mayor Smith voting together.

Mr. Johnson said he too has not heard much from Ms. Compo Pierce about taking the county board seat.

"There's been no other real interaction between Sarah and myself and the board, other than the nomination," he said.

Mr. Coon said there is still potential for another person to seek the county board seat as well, before Jan. 17.

"There may be someone out there who is making up their mind, but they haven't yet contacted me to actually seek the position," he said.

Until a replacement for Mr. Gray is selected, the 13th County Legislative district covering eastern Watertown has no county representative, and the Jefferson County Board of Legislators has only 14 members.