The Rye City Council declined to move forward with a $10,000 review of the Code of Ethics in an up or down vote at Wednesday’s meeting — more than two years after a controversial tree-cutting incident at the root of the issue.
Mayor Josh Cohn unexpectedly introduced the need for a review at the May 7 meeting, citing what he called an unlawful and politicized “investigation” by the city Board of Ethics into a 2023 emergency meeting he convened.
Cohn proposed hiring Steven Leventhal for no more than $10,000, an attorney with the state Bar Association’s Local and State Government Section Committee on Ethics and Professionalism.
With little discussion, the measure failed in a 5-2 vote as only Cohn, who is politically unaffiliated, and Councilwoman Julie Souza, a Democrat, backed it.
The mayor claimed that the Board of Ethics overstepped its authority in February 2023, when it determined that he, along with Souza and then councilmembers Carolina Johnson and Ben Stacks acted improperly by attending and voting at the emergency meeting to advance a tree-clearing moratorium as a developer was set to clear trees on a property that abutted Cohn’s home.
At the July 16 meeting, Cohn said disagreements regarding ethical behavior on the City Council and the ethics board has “harmed the functioning of our government for the last two years.” He added that the majority of the Code of Ethics has existed without amendment since 1966.
In urging the council to support the measure, Cohn pointed to recent updates to the city’s tree law, zoning code, Board of Architectural Review mandate, wireless regulations, and rock chipping and blasting ordinance, in arguing that revisiting the ethics code was a logical next step.
Councilwoman Jamie Jensen, a Democrat who voted the motion down, said that an ethics review is an important discussion but that it should take place after the comprehensive master plan is in place — not this year.
“I really do think that it needs to happen when we change city council people,” Jensen said. “It’s too close.”
Cohn and Souza are not running for reelection and will step aside at the end of the year.
The mayor pushed back, saying he felt it was his duty, especially as he prepares to leave office after eight years, to help prevent similar controversies from arising in the future.
“I think it’s just helpful to get some professional advice on this and I don’t think it’s a heavy lift on our part,” Souza said.
At the time of the controversy, the Board of Ethics included Elizabeth Griffins Matthews, former mayor Ted Dunn, and Edward Stein. Ted Livingston has since replaced Dunn on the board.
Following the ethics board’s ruling, Cohn, Souza, Johnson, and Stacks took the unprecedented step of suing the city in June 2023, approving funds both to pursue the lawsuit and to cover the city’s defense.
The group later dropped the lawsuit amid strong community backlash.
