The vote itself only took a few minutes. It was, however, the culmination of several months of effort by members of the Stratford Landing Civic Association and some of its members.
The effects, and perhaps, the hard feelings will be long-lasting.
Last week, the voting membership of the Stratford Recreation Association (SRA) held a special meeting to decide whether or not to change the name of Camden Court to Brinitzer Way. As stated on the official proxy, "The sole item for consideration at this special meeting will be whether the members of the Stratford Recreation Association will consent to the renaming of Camden Court to Brinitzer Way."
Efforts to get the name changed were spearheaded by members like Annie McNeff and Jay Spiegel. They wanted to acknowledge the contributions that Peter Brinitzer has made to the community over the years. The motion was made to the members of the Stratford Landing Civic Association (SLCA) where it passed easily. Since the sign is located on property owned by the SRA, they then had to take it to the SRA board. That was where it met opposition. The SRA board said that they needed to have a quorum, and delayed the vote until this past week.
The meeting was held last Thursday. Opening the meeting was SRA President Danny Normyle. He made one request. "We are a community, keep your comments civil."
While several of the comments were very passionate, the audience did remain civil. Several people spoke against the name change saying that they had had unfavorable dealings with Brinitzer in the past. Tom Lehner was especially adamant about not changing the street name, citing several incidences. Bob Kuletz spoke against the name change, asking why it needed to be changed.
"As long as Pete has run the pool, it has always been Brinitzer's Way."
OTHERS SPOKE IN FAVOR of the name change, including Tom Gerard, who said, "It supports Peter who has done wonderful things;" and Mary Lou Hoffman, who said that "SRA has not done anything to honor him [this was in response to somebody's statement that there was already a plaque at the pool dedicated to Brinitzer]."
Chaconas said, "I've known Pete since the mid 60's. I didn't really care for him then, and I don't really care for him now. However, I think we need a sign to say, 'This is what Pete has done.' From sewage systems to neighborhood watch to stop signs, you name it, Pete was there. He did this for all of us."
When all was said and done, there were not enough dissenters to overrule. The results of the ballot voting indicated that the voting membership of the SRA consented to the renaming of Camden Court to honor Peter Brinitzer. The actual count was not revealed, but Chaconas estimates that were approximately 200 proxies in favor; 50 against.
Brinitzer was not available for comment, but Annie McNeff, SLCA vice-president, said, "Donna [Brinitzer] was so impressed that this is happening."
McNeff went on to say, "There's not one person who put so much into this neighborhood. Someone who has that much dedication deserves a tribute."
Funding for the project will be provided by the SLCA; approval has already been obtained from the county for the name change. Mount Vernon District Supervisor Gerry Hyland is supportive of the name change and said that he would do whatever it took to make it happen.
"Pete has done a lot for the community over the past 35 years. I'm glad that people in his community are doing something to recognize his efforts. Pete was never bashful and never hesitated to call me when he felt something needed to be done," said Hyland.
One of the SRA board members said, "I hope when the sign actually goes up that someone does a well documented story on exactly what Mr. Brinitzer did — I've heard all kinds of contradictory things. It would help people years from now when they wonder 'who was this guy?'"