List of mayors of Rensselaer, New York

Rensselaer is a small city on the east side of the Hudson River in the state of New York. A total of 34 individuals have served as mayor since the city's incorporation in 1897, some serving numerous terms. Michael Stammel (Republican) is the current mayor; he was first elected in 2019 and began service on January 1, 2020. Stammel was re-elected to a four-year term on November 2, 2021.

Mike Stammel
34th Mayor of Rensselaer
Assumed office
January 1, 2020
Preceded byRichard Mooney
Chairman, Rensselaer County Legislature
In office
January 2, 2018 – December 31, 2021
Preceded byStan Brownell
Succeeded byKelly Hoffman
District 6, Rensselaer County Legislature
In office
January 1, 2002 – December 31, 2017
Preceded byLouis R. Polsinello Jr.
Succeeded byBrian J. Stall
Personal details
Political partyRepublican
SpouseBonnie Hahn
EducationEmpire State College (AS)

On April 23, 1897, Governor Frank S. Black granted a law under Chapter 359 creating the municipality that would be known as the City of Rensselaer.

Charles S. Allen served as the first Mayor of the new municipality. The first meeting of the common council of the City of Rensselaer was ordered by Mayor Allen to take place on Tuesday evening April 27, 1897 at 8:30PM.[1]

Mayor Michael E. Stammel

Michael E. Stammel is an American politician serving as the 34th mayor of Rensselaer.[2] He was sworn in on January 1, 2020. He was re-elected on November 2, 2021 to serve a four-year term.[3] Prior to serving as mayor, Stammel served as chairman of the Rensselaer County Legislature.

Career

Michael Stammel began his career as a politician serving on Rensselaer Common Council in 1994.[4] During his tenure on the Council, Stammel briefly served as council president. After finishing his term, he decided to run for a seat on the Rensselaer County Legislature.[5] In 2019, after the passing of Mayor Daniel Dwyer, Stammel decided to run against Richard Mooney in a special election to finish Dwyer's term.[6] Disagreements between Stammel and members of the Common Council led the Council to consider limiting politicians to only holding one office at a time. At the time, Stammel also served as Chairman of the Rensselaer County Legislature, a dual office position that the council wanted to prevent.[7]

Environmental issues

Stammel has been vocal about two different environmental issues in Rensselaer: the Dunn Landfill and the proposed BioHiTech waste to energy facility.[8][9] When the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation blasted the city over their handling of the proposed BioHiTech waste to energy facility, Stammel stepped in.[10] Public comments made by Stammel in August 2020 led to NYS DEC turning down permit requests by Rensselaer Resource Recovery / BioHiTech Global. Under the previous city administration, a land use permit for BioHiTech was greenlighted. Prior to the facility's permits being reviewed by NYS DEC, their land use permits with the City of Rensselaer expired. Due to expired permits, Stammel said the city would require a full environmental review before allowing the project to proceed. The city's original negative declaration for a full environmental review is what led to the state blasting the city.[11]

Dunn Landfill

During public hearings on the proposed Dunn Landfill in 2012, Stammel and his colleague on the County Legislature, Cristo, submitted a 3-page letter to NYS DEC with their concerns. (Letter dated 2/17/2012 available through FOIL request of NYS DEC) [12] Concerns highlighted by Stammel and Cristo included: Shredded materials and enforcement, truck traffic, and the proximity to the Rensselaer City School District campus. Stammel has been extremely vocal about the landfill's impacts on the community, stating that the landfill needs to be shut down. While serving on the County Legislature, Stammel sponsored several resolutions calling on the landfill's closure and help from the state Department of Health. Resolutions have also been passed by the City of Rensselaer Common Council and the East Greenbush Town Board.[13][14][15]

Emergency services

Michael Stammel has committed his life to emergency services, serving as a volunteer firefighter and EMT in the City of Rensselaer for many years. When elected Mayor, he vowed to bring a full-time ambulance service in to the city. He also vowed to upgrade equipment and vehicles.[16][17] Since becoming Mayor, there has been an ongoing dispute between Stammel and the city council over which ambulance service should serve as the provider for the city. The dispute lead to a court case where the judge determined that both sides were wrong. The judge determined that a Request for Proposals must be initiated and the city must interview all interested agencies before making a decision.[18]

Nineteenth century
#PortraitMayorStartEndPartyComment
1Charles S. Allen18971899The first Mayor of the City of Rensselaer, New York. Charles Allen convened the first common council meeting in the City of Rensselaer on April 27, 1897. Charles Allen was a graduate of Vermont Medical College. During the Civil War, he was an assistant surgeon of the 125th New York Volunteer Infantry. Allen was also coroner of Rensselaer County for nine years and President of the village of Greenbush.[19]
2James I. Miles19001901

Twentieth century
#PortraitMayorStartEndPartyComment
3Bradford R. Lansing1901RepublicanGrocer and pork dealer. Bradford Lansing was born in Niskayuna, NY in 1860. He became Mayor of Rensselaer in 1901. Lansing was a member of the NYS Assembly between 1906–1912.
4Thomas Kimber19041907
5W. Rockefeller19081911
6Thomas Penny19111913Chaplain of Masonic Greenbush Lodge Chapter, No. 274 in 1911.
7Fred A. Rohloff19141915
8John H. McIntyre19151918Appointed Sheriff by the Governor of New York on June 30, 1921.
9John S. Hall19191920Served on the Committee on Literacy Program in 1919.
10Henry Meurs19211922RepublicanHardware dealer. Henry Meurs was a member of the NYS Assembly representing the 2nd District of Rensselaer County in 1924.
11Harvey C. Younghans19231925Harvey Younghans served as Mayor for a short time. Several years later, Younghans served as city clerk.
12James W. Adams19261929RepublicanPreviously served as city Treasurer.
13Clarence A. McNally19301931DemocratAlternate delegate to Democratic National Convention from New York in 1960. Clarence McNally served as Mayor during the 1930s and the 1950s.
14James Johnstone19321935
15William T. Wright19361939Republican
16Marshall C. Rose19401941Democrat
17Charles G. Maloy19431945Charles Maloy did not finish his term in office and resigned for unknown reasons.
18Thomas S. H. Clark19451953Democrat
19W. Hardt19531953
20Clarence A. McNally19541961See first entry above
21John H. Warden19661971
22Irwin Stewart19721973
23Joseph P. Mink19741981
24Thomas E. Henry III19811983Mayor Henry was removed from office in 1983 following his conviction for official misconduct and obstructing governmental administration after threatening an alderman to vote a specific way.[20]
25Edward J. Finlan19831983Edward Finlan was instated as Mayor of Rensselaer following Mayor Henry's conviction. Finlan had previously served as President of the city council. Under the city charter, the next in the line of succession to fill a vacancy in the mayor's office is the council president.
26Joseph E. Harrigan19841993
27John F. Ryan19941996
28-Joseph Kapp19961996
29Edward J. Finlan19971997
29Linda M. Ganance19982001

Twenty-first century
#PortraitMayorStartEndPartyComment
31Mark G. Pratt20022005RepublicanMark Pratt was a Republican mayor who ran on a bipartisan platform. He made significant changes even though he faced opposition. Due to forging ahead to make great positive change, he was accused of gas theft and the judge dismissed all charges as there was no wrongdoing.[21]
32Daniel J. Dwyer20062018DemocratDaniel Dwyer was a past city alderman and the 32nd Mayor of Rensselaer. Mayor Dwyer passed away in November 2018 after serving as mayor for 12 years.[22]
33Richard J. Mooney20192020DemocratRichard Mooney was a past city Alderman, Council President and the 33rd Mayor of Rensselaer. Under the city charter, Mooney was instated as mayor following the death of Mayor Daniel Dwyer in 2018.
34Michael E. Stammel2020PresentRepublicanMichael Stammel previously served as a past city Alderman and a Legislator on the Rensselaer County Legislature from 2002-2021. From 2017-2021 he served as its Chairman. Mayor Stammel is the 34th and current Mayor of Rensselaer.

References
  1. Historian :: City of Rensselaer, New York
  2. Gwizdala, Michael (November 6, 2019). "Stammel wins mayoral race in Rensselaer". The Record. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
  3. "Mike Stammel wins re-election in Rensselaer mayoral race". Retrieved December 6, 2021.
  4. "Michael Stammel Rensselaer, NY Alumni". Rensselaer, NY Alumni Association. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  5. "After bitter race, Rensselaer Mayor Mike Stammel declares victory". WAMC. 2021-12-06. Retrieved 2022-03-07.
  6. Lucas, Dave. "City Of Rensselaer Poised For Big Changes At City Hall In 2020". WAMC. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
  7. Crowe, Kenneth. "Rensselaer ends dual office holding; mayor still vows to run again". Times Union. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
  8. "Community Discussion Over Troubled Dunn Landfill In Rensselaer Continues". WAMC. 2021-09-30. Retrieved 2022-03-07.
  9. "DEC denies essential permits for proposed waste facility on the Hudson in Rensselaer". Riverkeeper. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  10. Karlin, Rick. "State blasts Rensselaer over trash processing". Press Reader. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
  11. Karlin, Rick. "DEC turns down permit request for waste-to-energy plant in Rensselaer". Times Union. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
  12. "NYS DEC Foil Request". Open FOIL NY. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
  13. "Rensselaer mayor calls on state to close Dunn landfill". WTEN News 10 ABC. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
  14. Levy, Dan. "Resolution to close Rensselaer landfill passes unanimously". WNYT News Channel 13. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
  15. Nearing, Brian. "Rensselaer county lawmakers urging scrutiny on Dunn dump". San Francisco Chronicle. Times Union. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
  16. Gwizdala, Mike. "Stammel sees optimistic future for Rensselaer". The Record. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
  17. Maugeri, Steve. "Rensselaer mayor pushes for ambulance provider in the city". CBS6 Albany. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
  18. Crowe, Kenneth. "Rensselaer city ambulance service snarled in political dispute". Times Union. Retrieved 9 March 2022.
  19. Journal of the American Medical Association, vol. 73 (published December 31, 1919), January 7, 2020
  20. Matter of Henry v. Tutunjian
  21. Franco, James (May 21, 2003), "Police chief pouring gas on fire in Rensselaer", Troy Record
  22. "Rensselaer Mayor Dan Dwyer dies, remembered for dedication to city". Times Union. 2018-11-20. Retrieved 2020-06-05.
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