Mayor Says 'Circus Of Errors' Led To $15M Judgement Against City

MOUNT VERNON, NY — Mount Vernon Shawyn Patterson-Howard said insurance will not cover a nearly $15 million judgement that resulted from a previous administration's dispute with a contractor that operated a tennis bubble on city property.

Patterson-Howard said, unless something changes, the burden will fall squarely on taxpayers, in a statement released following the jaw-dropping award. She said because the jury found that the city was in breach of contract, insurance will not cover any portion of the judgement and grant funding, including federal COVID-19 relief money which cannot be used for lawsuit settlements.

The mayor faulted both her predecessors and the unwillingness of the plaintiffs to accept a reasonable settlement for an impending fiscal crisis at city hall.

"The City offered $1.2 million last week which was rejected by the attorneys for Kela Tennis Inc.," Patterson-Howard said. "This money was from the contingency funds we allocated in our 2023 budget, and it was offered in consultation with the Mayor and Comptroller. It appears that the jury and the lawyers for Mr. Simunyola, believe that Mount Vernon has access to capital that simply doesn’t exist."

With no savings and no credit rating the Mount Vernon could not make a stronger financial settlement offer "in good faith," Patterson-Howard said.

The lawsuit stemmed from a long-running dispute that came to a head in the early morning hours of June 1, 2018 when under the direction of city officials, contractors deflated the Kela Tennis's bubble at Memorial Field.

"It’s been the goal of this administration to deal with the horrors of terrible fiscal mismanagement and the circus of errors that occurred prior to 2020," Mayor Patterson-Howard said. "The City will explore all decisions up to and including appealing this decision with the Comptroller and City Council to ensure this $9.4 million judgement and interest totaling approximately $15 million is not carried wholly by our residents."