Embattled iBuilding Inspector Gene Argiro strikes back
Published on July 28th, 2004
STONEHAM, MA - Accusing Stoneham’s Board of Selectmen of nepotism, a Boston-based law firm has warned the town to cease its reported intimidation and retaliation against Building Inspector Gene Argiro in a four-page document received by Town Administrator David Berry on Monday morning.
The letter, sent from the Law offices of Herbert L. Holtz, alleges that three former and current Selectmen illegally threatened, intimidated, and retaliated against Argiro for his refusal to turn a blind eye to building code violations at properties owned or operated by the board members’ personal friends.
“He has been unlawfully pressured by Town officials to undertake illegal activities (most prominently, issuing building permits for non-conforming projects and vacating cease and desist orders for premises with illegal conditions),” the letter reads. “Mr. Argiro is further concerned that he has been retaliated against for refusing to acquiesce to the aforementioned political pressures.”
Specifically naming former Selectmen Chairwoman Mary Pecoraro, current Selectmen Chairman Cosmo Ciccarello, and current Selectman Charlie Smith, the correspondence includes the word-for-word text of a threat reportedly left on Argiro’s voice mail by Smith on June 5, 2003.
According to the letter, Smith was responding to remarks made by the building inspector in the Stoneham Independent the week before. Smith, who had been hospitalized the week before for an illness, returned home to find Argiro’s comments and threatened to release supposed proof of Argiro’s own political favoritism towards friends and acquaintances.
“I’m not threatening you or anything, Gene. I’m just telling you plain facts that by this time next Thursday, people are gona’ want your head in this town because I’m going to release everything,” the italicized text of Smith’s message reads.
“…You [expletive] me off and I’m coming after you — so get ready. You want to talk to me one-to-one, man-to-man, my number is [sic]…Call me Gene, because the gloves are off my friend. Good-bye,” the alleged message concludes.
Smith, who is on vacation this week, could not be reached by The Stoneham Independent as of press time.
The letter also claims that Pecoraro attempted to fire Argiro for his refusal to submit to her own political pressure to turn his back to building code violations. The letter seems to imply that Pecoraro did so at the behest of a friend and local contractor who sued the town based on Argiro’s actions.
“Ms. Pecoraro is notably, a friend of local contractor, Dennis Bain, who has sued the Town based on assorted grievances he has with the Building Inspectors Office’s lawful discharge of its duties,” Holtz writes.
Pecoraro also could not be reached by The Independent for comment as of press-time.
Lastly, the document cites three specific locations where Ciccarello interceded on behalf of property owners in an alleged attempt to circumvent the permitting process. Including a dentist office, an two-family home on Congress St., and St. Patrick’s Church, Ciccarello admits that he approached Argiro in an attempt to work through the permit issues.
However, Ciccarello adamantly denies that he ever requested or implied that the building inspector issue illegal permits. Instead, Ciccarello said he was acting on behalf of the citizens who elected him, fulfilling a duty that the seven-term Selectmen is no longer able to perform because of previous accusations of nepotism by Argiro, says Ciccarello.
“It’s absolutely all a lie. If somebody has a problem, I just try to cut through the red- tape and push the process along. I never told him to do anything illegal. I was a general construction inspector and senior inspector for the MDC for 37-years myself,” Ciccarello said.
“Anybody who calls me about the Building Department now, I just refer to Dave Berry because I’ve been accused [by him] before. And that’s lousy because as a Selectmen, I’m supposed to be helping citizens out and expediting things,” the Selectman Chair added.
Ciccarello also disputed the document’s claims the board “disproportionately” slashed Argiro’s FY05 departmental budget in retribution for the building inspectors’ refusal to go along with the illegal requests.
Referring to a budget meeting in early April where Ciccarello unsuccessfully attempted to restore the assistant building inspector’s position to the department, he labeled Argiro’s attacks as baseless.
“I tried to restore money to his department and it was shot down in a 2-2 vote. And how can he say his department was the only department to get hit like that when we laid off all the traffic directors but three of them and completely eliminated the MIS/GIS department? Even the town planner’s position was cut in half,” Ciccarello countered.
According to Ciccarello, Argiro’s complaints about his department reductions really stem from the fact that Argiro is no longer physically capable of handling his job responsibilities.
“The man is legally blind and we had to make reasonable accommodations by hiring an assistant building inspector. Being disabled is fine, but you can’t hire somebody else to do your job. It’s unacceptable.”
According to several other offices within Town Hall, complaints about the building department have been rampant for years.
“It just disrupts the whole building,” said Town Clerk John Hanright. “We get no less than 10 complaints a day regarding the building department. And that’s happened for years, for things like the office not being opened, permits not getting issued, and nobody answering the phone down there.”
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