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Attorney's office subject of shakeup
Reorganization is expected next week in the town attorney's office following Michael Stachowski's announcement that he will retire as Cheektowaga's top law advisor along with Jennifer Runfola's decision to step down as deputy town attorney and return to private practice.
The Town Board is expected Monday to appoint Kevin Schenk to Stachowski's position. Schenk has served as a deputy town attorney since 1985 after joining the town attorney's office as a law clerk in 1979.
Supervisor James J. Jankowiak said that Schenk will serve as a fulltime attorney, as opposed to Stachowski's part-time status.
"The board saw this as an opportunity to look at how we can make things a little better," Jankowiak said, explaining that a full-time attorney position should improve communication between the law department and town officials.
"We had three part-time attorneys," Jankowiak pointed out. "If one was working on a project and they didn't communicate with one another, if we wanted to find out the status of that project, we had to wait until the appropriate attorney was back at work."
One full-time attorney will eliminate the waiting and will allow town officials to communicate with just one person, Jankowiak added.
Jankowiak called Schenk "a perfect fit" because Schenk knows all of the town department heads and is familiar with the town court.
"I am very familiar with Kevin's work ethic and attention to detail, and I'm looking forward to working with him in this new role," Jankow- iak added.
Jennifer Runfola, meanwhile, is returning to her private practice, opening up a deputy town attorney position. Jankowiak said Runfola was planning to step down in the spring, and Stachowski's decision allowed the town board to make the changes in one sweep.
In addition to Schenk's promotion, the board is expected to name Jeff Whiting as deputy town attorney and Kathleen McDonald and Paul Piotrowski as town prosecutors.
"We believe that Jeff Whiting, Kathleen McDonald and Paul Piotrowski will serve the town well in these positions," said Jankowiak. All three are graduates of the State University of New York at Buffalo Law School.
Whiting, a 1986 graduate, served as prosecutor for both Cheektowaga and Depew for the last eight years. Before joining the town, he conducted a private practice in which he concentrated on insurance defense litigation, general commercial and business law matters.
McDonald is a 1991 graduate of the school and has served as the attorney for the Town of Andover and the Andover Central School District. She also spent seven years as an assistant district attorney for Allegany County.
1988 graduate Paul Piotrowski spent 18 years with the Erie County District Attorney's Office. During that time he served as chief of the Juvenile Justice Bureau, Major Case Unit and Narcotics Unit.
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