South Orange Village May Not Reappoint Village Clerk

The Township of South Orange Village Board of Trustees are searching for a new Village Clerk despite the current clerk's “extraordinary service,” the town announced on its website Tuesday.

Robin Kline, who has served as Village Clerk for the past three years, may no longer be employed by the Village starting September 30.

Under the state statute, any reappointment within 60 days of the expiration of the term would relate back to the date of expiration and provide for a tenured position, the village stated on its website.

“At this time, the Board of Trustees has not made such a reappointment nor indicated an intention to make a reappointment within that 60 day period,” the village website states.

“The Board has expressed a fundamental opposition to tenure and is exploring its options at this time and intends to address the issue of tenure with the State Legislature,” the website continues. “The Board of Trustees and the Village President thank Ms. Kline for her extraordinary service to the Village.”

Kline was not able to comment on the matter as of Monday, Aug. 26.

Kline's appointing resolution, which was passed in 2010, set a termination date of July 31, 2013. The Board of Trustees will have until September 30 to make a decision on whether or not to reappoint Kline.

The Village currently lists Municipal Clerk under the Employment Opportunities section of the website.

“During my time of the Board of Trustees, one of my proudest accomplishments was helping to hire our new Village Clerk, Robin Kline”, said Former Village Trustee Michael Goldberg in his Patch Blog. “She not only spoke about organization, transparency, efficiency, customer service, ethics, hard work and professionalism - she lived it - every single day.”

“The amount of information she processed, including meeting minutes, ordinances, resolutions, legal notices, OPRA requests, correspondence, liquor licenses, elections, licenses and permits, just to name a few, was staggering,” he continued. “However, she kept on top of all of it, followed through on everything and never let a ball drop.”

A group of residents have taken to an online petition to urge the Board to reappoint Kline. As of Monday, the petition had more than 60 signatures.

Petitioners have commented that Kline is an “asset,” “the best village employee ever,” and a “dedicated employee.”

“South Orange is extremely fortunate to have Robin as Village Clerk,” said petitioner Alan Ash. “Robin is regarded highly in the community both professionally and personally. Hopefully, the Board of Trustees will reconsider its decision.”