Lake union leader keeps RDA seat
NWI Times
June 15, 2016
CROWN POINT — A split Lake County Board of Commissioners kept faith with troubled labor boss Randy Palmateer.
In the face of criticism over Palmateer's drunken driving arrest earlier this spring, the three-member county executive board reappointed him as their representative on the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority, which oversees millions of dollars in economic development projects.
Commissioners Kyle Allen, D-Gary, and Mike Repay, D-Hammond, voted for Palmateer. Commissioner Gerry Scheub, D-Crown Point, voted against reappointment.
It comes a month after the Democratic majority on the Lake County Council also gave their support to Palmateer, business manager of the 25,000-member Northwestern Indiana Building and Construction Trades Council, an AFL-CIO affiliate, which represents more than 38 union trade locals in Lake, Porter, Newton and Jasper counties.
Palmateer has been under fire since Hammond police stopped him in late March at a sobriety checkpoint and arrested him despite his attempt to contact Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. Palmateer had a prior drunken driving arrest in 2011 in Crown Point.
In both cases, the prosecutor's office initially filed charges of operating a vehicle while intoxicated against him and later reduced them to reckless driving convictions.
Palmateer, who wasn't present at the meeting, declined to comment when reached after the meeting.
Repay said Palmateer's service to county government on the RDA "has been as good as we can ask for. Despite his notorious legal troubles, those things haven't affected his ability to serve."
A Times review of the RDA board meetings Palmateer attended indicated he had been absent six out of 14 meetings. Repay said Palmateer told him RDA meetings once conflicted with his union meetings, but he has attended all RDA meetings since the meeting schedule changed.
Mark Leyva, who is challenging Repay in the general election this fall, said, "When you have people on these boards, they represent the county. When you have problems like Mr. Palmateer, what does that say to the public? Is this the best they can do?"
Allen said he made a promise to Palmateer to keep him on the RDA before the alleged drunken driving controversy erupted. "He made a mistake. I'll give anybody one chance," Allen said.
Allen said his vote wasn't swayed by any union financial support Palmateer can wield.
"I haven't received any contributions from the labor unions. I have only received one donation from Mr. Palmateer for $100 when I was on Gary City Council. Since I've been on the board of commissioners (four months) I haven't had a fundraiser and receive no financial support from the unions or Mr. Palmateer. I'm not doing this with blinders on," Allen said.
Scheub said voting against Palmateer, who he considers a friend, was difficult. "I feel sorry for his family. They've gone through hell on this. I just hope he understands what I did and we move forward," Scheub said.
"I got a lot of telephone calls. They thought he should go back and work on the building trades and make sure labor was tougher and stronger and back off on all this other involvement, get everything straightened out and go forward. I vote according to my district's wishes.
"I support labor. People say I do everything the unions want me to do. That's not true," Scheub said, recounting his opposition to the Illiana Expressway, the Singleton Quarry and other projects that would generate union jobs.
"This is one situation where I told them what I had to do. They weren't offended by it. Randy wasn't offended by it. They said do what you have to do," he said.
Schererville Town Councilman Jerry Tippy, who is challenging Scheub this fall, said afterward, "I found it interesting that Scheub did not try to convince his fellow commissioners to join him in voting against the appointment. It was almost as though he wanted them to vote in favor."
Lake officials first appointed Palmateer to the RDA in 2013.
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