Roosevelt Island Residents Association Common Council Meeting Wednesday October 2, Public Invited To Attend - Will RIRA Give Answers About Financial Irregularities Revealed Last Month And Currently Under Investigation?

The Roosevelt Island Residents Association (RIRA) Common Council will hold it's monthly meeting tomorrow evening, October 2 at 8:00 PM in the Good Shepherd Community Center (543 Main Street).

 Image of September 4, 2019 RIRA Meeting

As reported September 5, during the September 4 RIRA Meeting:

...I and 3 other members of the community attending the meeting were asked to leave so that the RIRA Common Council could discuss in Executive session, meaning without the public present, the following agenda item:

7. Call for Executive Session - Treasurer's Resignation...

And:

...RIRA President Lynn Strong-Shinozaki sent out the following statement regarding the subject of the Executive Session:

On August 27, 2019 RIRA President Lynne Strong-Shinozaki discovered irregularities in the RIRA bank account.

Officers of the organization initiated an internal investigation, during which the Treasurer resigned.

An official investigation by law enforcement is underway and RIRA is fully cooperating with the authorities.

At present, there appears to be no loss of funds in the account.

Because an investigation is underway, there are limits to what may be publicly discussed. RIRA will provide updates as permitted.

In the meantime, the RIRA Common Council and its committees look forward to continuing our efforts to improve the quality of life on Roosevelt Island and to represent the interests of residents.

All questions about this matter should be directed to RIRA President Lynne Strong Shinozaki....

To date,no further information has been disclosed by RIRA to the Roosevelt Island community. Also, many RIRA members, may even be a majority of the Common Council, have expressed frustration and disappointment that they have not been informed about what happened and the extent of the financial irregularities.

Yesterday I asked RIRA President Lynn Strong-Shinozaki and the RIRA Common Council:

It's been almost a month since Lynn announced RIRA Bank account irregularities.

To date, no further information has been disclosed to the Roosevelt Island community.

I've received reports that certain members of RIRA are covering up information about what happened.

Is there any statement from RIRA as an organization or individual members to explain to the Roosevelt Island community what happened and what is being done to make sure it does not happen again.

Ms Strong-Shinozaki replied today:

Following advice of RIRA’s Tax Accountant and during the course of the police investigation, I am unable to address questions about the former treasurer and the RIRA bank accounts. There were irregularities in the checking account and the funds have been recovered.

The police have been invited to attend the next RIRA meeting to give an update on their investigation, which may take up to 90 days.

The matter of the bank account and the former treasurer was discussed in Executive Session and should have remained among the members of the Common Council. Any allegation of a cover-up suggests that discussion has been inappropriately held with individuals outside the Common Council.

As for plans going forward, RIRA now has a Finance Committee Chair that is looking at policies related to processes, expenses and budget. For example, it has always been the policy that RIRA requires two signatures on every check. This is a strong and healthy practice.

In addition, RIRA has prohibited use of a debit card. This practice was violated in the past and will be reviewed with Amalgamated Bank so that no debit card will be issued in the future.

There are other issues and policies on the table that will be reviewed; recommendations will be put forward at future RIRA meetings.

As always, prior to the start of each monthly meeting there is a Public Session in which residents can come and address the Common Council Delegates on any issue of concern. All members of the Roosevelt Island community are invited to attend.