Spadoro's last hurrah

by: kwilkinson

Mon Dec 26, 2005 at 01:36:55 PM EST

Edison mayor wrong to appoint new chief

Edison Police Chief Edward Costello apparently saw the writing on the wall. And so on Thursday, a little more than a week before a new mayor was due to be installed, Costello abruptly announced his retirement, saying he didn't "choose to work with the incoming administration." The truth, of course, is that there is every likelihood that Costello himself might have been unchosen had he stuck around for the independent review of the troubled department promised by the incoming mayor, Jun Choi.

As it is, outgoing Mayor George Spadoro did the public, the new mayor and his own reputation one last disservice by promptly installing a new chief, without seeking input or even informing the man due to replace him. There were those who said Spadoro acted within his legal rights; but as Abraham Lincoln noted, some things that are legally right are not necessarily morally right.

Who knows what Spadoro had in mind by acting as he did: spite, one last power trip, or even a last attempt to reward another political friend? The man he appointed to succeed Costello, George Mieczkowski, also has served 33 years in the Edison Department and will likely see a boost in his pension from even a temporary stint as chief.

Besides the chutzpah involved in naming a replacement 11 days before he was due to lose his job as mayor, Spadoro also failed as a leader. There is no doubt Edison residents deserve a top-to-bottom review of operations within the department, given the embarrassment it has generated over the years, particularly in the last 12 months. It may be that Mieczkowski is the man who can bring change. But certainly every other option -- including brand-new blood -- ought to have been considered before the job was handed to him, seemingly without a moment of hesitation or review.