Monessen mayor's Sunshine Act lawsuit targets city's redevelopment authority
May 24—After being the target of three lawsuits related to potential Sunshine Act violations at a January 2020 council meeting, Monessen Mayor Matt Shorraw has sued the men involved in two of those lawsuits — including one who was a political opponent in last week's primary election — claiming they are now the ones violating the state's public meeting laws.
Shorraw filed suit May 7 against former Monessen Mayor Lou Mavrakis and city resident Ron Mozer, accusing them of holding city redevelopment authority meetings in violation of the Sunshine Act.
Shorraw filed the lawsuit a little over a week before Mozer beat him in the Democratic mayoral primary, 783-522.
At Monessen council's Jan. 6, 2020, meeting, Shorraw utilized a majority of council votes to fire the city solicitor and city administrator, changed the date and time of council meetings without asking other council members, appointed committee members as a single motion and adjourned the meeting without allowing public comment, along with five other administrative moves that came with no public explanation other than saying Shorraw was "moving in a new direction."
Mavrakis and Mozer both separately sued the mayor and councilmen Donald Gregor and Gilbert Coles on the grounds that none of those items were listed as part of the meeting agenda, and no public participation was permitted.
The Mid-Mon Valley Publishing Co., which prints the Mon Valley Independent newspaper, also filed suit against both the city and Shorraw, and in December 2020 the Westmoreland County Court of Common Pleas found that Shorraw and the city had indeed violated a provision of the Sunshine Act at the meeting.
The publishing company also sought to have the council's Sunshine-violating decisions invalidated, however the court's opinion noted that subsequent council meetings included ratification of the decisions after they were properly included as published agenda items and public comment was taken.
"Having found that the improper actions of the Jan. 6, 2020, meeting were subsequently correctly ratified, this court cannot invalidate said actions," Judge Harry F. Smail Jr. wrote in his opinion.
Mavrakis' suit was settled after Shorraw, Coles and Gregor agreed to collectively donate $500 to the Salvation Army of Monessen, and Mozer's suit was withdrawn and discontinued with prejudice in January 2021.
Shorraw's lawsuit contends that he, Coles, Gregor and a group of citizens were regular participants at monthly meetings of the Redevelopment Authority of the City of Monessen, where Mavrakis serves as chairman and Mozer serves as treasurer.
This past spring, Shorraw said those meetings began happening in private at Mozer's residence, and he sent a Right-to-Know request for a copy of the authority's legal notices for board meetings throughout 2021 and for 2019, which he says he did not receive.
"My co-plaintiffs and I feel they violate the law in how their meetings were held," Shorraw told the Tribune-Review. "The redevelopment authority is not helping the City of Monessen at all, if it is not functioning properly, or if it is not fulfilling its purpose."
Shorraw is asking that Mavrakis and Mozer be fined for each meeting that was not properly advertised, and be made to ratify actions taken at improperly advertised meetings.
A legal advertisement that was printed April 7, 2021, in the Mon Valley Independent, the city's paper of record, lays out the authority's meeting schedule, with dates, times and location. Shorraw said the ad was published after he made his Right-to-Know request, ane noted that the ad did not include the authority's April meeting.
Mavrakis and Mozer could not be immediately reached for comment.
Patrick Varine is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Patrick at 724-850-2862, pvarine@triblive.com or via Twitter .
