By Dan Murphy
The City Council, at its meeting last month, unanimously approved the re-appointment of Vincent Spano as Yonkers city clerk to a five-year term. Spano, who was first appointed in 2013 to a five-year term, has served in the clerk’s office since 2003 and over the past five years has made improvements to the office that have resulted in the delivering of better service to the people of Yonkers.
The City Clerk’s Office is an important position in the City of Yonkers, and in most communities across the state. It is the office where many residents turn for assistance in getting a license or permit. The clerk’s office and staff interact with people when they may be feeling their greatest – for a marriage license, or when they are saddened and in need of a death certificate.
“When I was appointed in 2013, I had learned a lot under former Clerk Joan Dierlien but wanted to make improvements to the office and modernize our services,” said Spano.
Those changes include providing many certificate applications available online through the City of Yonkers website; efficiencies and better training of staff that permits them to complete multiple duties has resulted in better service to customers; all mailed and delivered requests are completed or responded to the same day; more than 400 Freedom of Information Law requests have been responded to in a timely manner; residential alarm permits are now color-coded and easily removable; E-Z Pass accounts and starter kits have been made available in the clerk’s office; credit cards are now accepted for all fees; and extended hours of operation to include evening hours.
In emergency cases, the clerk’s office has arranged for judicial bedside marriage licenses to be issued, and for services to be made for a Yonkers couples who is terminally ill.
One of the important duties of the city clerk is to take the minutes of the council meetings, and assist the City Council – and new, incoming members, whenever possible. Under City Clerk Spano, the clerk’s office continues to provide transitional training for incoming City Council presidents and their respective staff, produces and directs a mayoral inauguration and two councilmember swearing-in ceremonies, assists in special legislative research on behalf of all councilmembers, and transfers non-secured legislative archives to a secured area.
No city clerk could perform the duties required of them by the City Charter without a good staff, and Spano has been able to hire, train and develop his staff to a high standard of service. Spano helped oversee the hiring of the first bilingual COY Registrar and staff to service an ever-growing Spanish-speaking public, and trained deputies to administer all functions of the city clerk.
“I have a great staff that works together as a team,” said Spano. “We provide a good service to the people.”
Spano has been able to operate his office at a high rate of quality service, while operating under-budget and bringing in additional revenue. Staff members are trained and have implemented an accountability deposit system for incoming fees and payments, and average revenue in the clerk’s office has been $5,000 higher than the past five years, and expenditures have been reduced by 12 percent over the past five years.
Marriage record revenue has doubled in the last five years by eliminating the free copies of legal marriage records.
Spano said he wants to continue the progress in the City Clerk’s Office and move it forward. Digitally reproducing and safeguarding historical records and city documents dating back to 1876 and making those same documents available online, and accepting credit card payments with a credit card affidavit are innovations to come in the City Clerk’s Office, located at City Hall, room 107.
Spano is a member of the Westchester Putnam Town and City Clerks Association, where he shares and receives new ideas and gets a sense of what other clerks in the region are doing.
“Thanks to the City Council for having the faith to reappoint me,” said Spano. “Public service
is in my blood and something I look forward to doing for another five years.” During the council vote, many of the council members mentioned how, under Spano, the office is non-partisan and is only about doing the business of the people.
Our newspapers’ interactions with Spano are in the publication of the city’s legal notices. Over the past five years, Spano and his office has delivered these notices to us by deadline, enabling us to print them for you to read and to comply with state law. This important function has been performed smoothly and effectively.
The fact that the City Council unanimously approved his reappointment showed a bipartisan approval of Spano’s last five years, and we agree that there should be no politics in the delivery of services in the City Clerk’s Office.
If ever there was a retail dynamic to city government, it’s in the clerk’s office, and City Clerk Vincent Spano has served his customers – the people of Yonkers – well.
