With Division Still Fresh, New Nelsonville Mayor Appointed
Serving until next year’s election, Michael Bowman was appointed new mayor of Nelsonville last week by most of the village board, replacing Chris Caccamise, who stepped down from the post last month.
In a 3-1 vote, Bowman was appointed to a term that’ll last until April 2020, with trustees Lisa Mechaley and Dove Pedlowsky selecting him, while Trustee Dave Moroney voted against his appointment. (Bowman voted for himself, as well.)
Bowman was sworn in last week by Nelsonville Judge Dennis Zenz.
“I’m really honored that they decided to give this to me,” Bowman said in an interview. “It’s a great honor and I look forward to serving everybody.”
Bowman has served as a trustee since last year, making a reemergence into local politics after serving on the Cold Spring village board for one term a few years prior. He has also been the past president of the Cold Spring Fire Department and is a lifelong member of the community.
Bowman said over the next year he’d like to keep everything running smoothly as the village is still in the middle of litigation after Homeland Towers brought a lawsuit against them for denying the company a permit to build a cell tower. He said he remains committed to stopping development on a Secor Lane parcel of land.
Caccamise resigned after a two- month stint as mayor due to personal circumstances that included moving out of the village limits to Garrison. The sudden departure came after he beat former mayor Bill O’Neill in March for the seat in what was an ugly campaign season for the small village. Caccamise maintained the new circumstances in his life were unforeseen during his run for office, though critics of him alleged he was not transparent with voters when he ran.
Bowman supported Caccamise, Mechaley, and Pedlowsky when they ran in March. When Caccamise stepped down, he suggested Bowman or Moroney assume the mayoral post because they had more experience on the board.
Pointing to that experience, Mechaley nominated Bowman for the position.
Moroney could not be reached for comment over his vote against Bowman’s appointment.
Bowman said it was too early to commit to running for mayor next year when it is again up for grabs. The trustee seat that he previously held would also be up in 2020.
With much acrimony and division still lingering following last March’s election, Bowman hopes to be a uniting figure.
“There’s a lot of angry people so the next nine months are going to be about bringing everybody back together and if I’m successful at that, I’m definitely open to (running for mayor),” Bowman said. “Like I said, it’s not one of my life goals, but I’ll do my best.”
