Shandaken’s Board of Ethics said it found no ethics concerns or violations by Supervisor Barbara Mansfield following a review prompted by allegations about her treatment of town employees and the handling of a permit for work at her home.
“We determined that there were no ethics concerns or violations by Supervisor Mansfield,” ethics board member Matthew VanValkenburg wrote to Town Board members on Aug. 14.
Mansfield, who referred the matter to the board herself, denied wrongdoing and described the workplace allegations as “completely false.”
The board’s review addressed concerns raised by Howard Widensky, a Shandaken property owner who has publicly criticized Mansfield’s administration. In an Aug. 10 email, ethics board member Patricia Ruane told Widensky that the board wanted to examine his claims that Mansfield treated town employees and volunteers disrespectfully and that code violations may have been ignored during renovations at Mansfield’s home performed by Councilmember Elizabeth Kneissl.
The finding came amid the resignations of two town inspectors.
Donna LeMoine, Shandaken’s code enforcement officer and building inspector for more than four years, submitted her resignation on Aug. 3. She said Mansfield repeatedly yelled at her, changed her responsibilities, and pressured her to take actions that LeMoine thought might be improper.
Alan Harmon, the town’s part-time building and fire safety inspector, also resigned. He said he witnessed Mansfield act aggressively toward LeMoine during at least one meeting and questioned the administration’s handling of the Building Department.
LeMoine didn’t file an ethics complaint. She said she spent about a month trying to compose a letter explaining her departure.
“Some things we were asked to do felt not legal to me and so I had to leave to avoid legal entanglements,” LeMoine wrote in a message to Widensky that was shared with The Overlook. “I felt so harassed and intimidated there.”
LeMoine alleged that Mansfield frequently yelled, called her names, and berated other employees, sometimes leaving them in tears. She declined to identify those employees, saying some depended on their town jobs.
No named witness interviewed by The Overlook corroborated LeMoine’s broader allegations of frequent yelling, name-calling, and employees being left in tears.
Harmon described one meeting in which he said Mansfield was aggressive toward LeMoine. He said Mansfield questioned their knowledge of building codes and placed greater confidence in Kneissl’s interpretation.
Harmon said he told Mansfield that he and LeMoine had about 50 years of combined experience in construction and code-related work. Mansfield responded, “How dare you question a board member?” according to Harmon.
Mansfield broadly denied the allegations about her conduct but didn’t directly address Harmon’s account of that exchange.
Grace Grant, the town assessor and zoning enforcement officer, said she works in Town Hall every day and never witnessed the yelling or harassment LeMoine described.
“I never saw that happening,” Grant said.
Deputy Supervisor Robert Drake similarly said he hadn’t witnessed Mansfield yell at employees or create a hostile workplace. He acknowledged, however, that he had spent less time in Town Hall this year while campaigning as the Democratic nominee for the District 22 seat in the Ulster County Legislature.
Drake said town officials had concerns about LeMoine’s availability during flood-related work. He also said she wasn’t formally disciplined, given a written warning, or placed on a performance improvement plan.
Questions about a permit for work on Mansfield’s Phoenicia home were also referred to the ethics board. The permit identifies Kneissl’s company, Good Dog Projects LLC, as the contractor. The application describes the replacement of a deteriorated front porch.
LeMoine said she felt pressured to issue the permit and couldn’t complete the inspections because parts of the project had been covered before she examined them.
Mansfield confirmed that Kneissl performed the construction and that LeMoine issued the permit. She denied interfering with LeMoine’s authority or receiving preferential treatment.
Kneissl didn’t respond to a request for comment.
Shandaken’s ethics code doesn’t expressly prohibit one town official from hiring another for private work. It bars officials from holding interests that substantially conflict with their public duties or using their positions to secure unwarranted privileges. The documents reviewed by The Overlook don’t establish that Mansfield or Kneissl used a town position to influence the permit.
Widensky, who created a website publicizing the allegations, has a separate land-use matter before Shandaken boards. He owns Fichtner Terrace, an 18.1-acre mobile home property licensed for 15 sites, and has sought to retain three manufactured homes while adding 12 modular rental units.
At an Aug. 19 Zoning Board of Appeals meeting, Widensky said the Town Board had rejected his proposal. Town officials said no formal denial had been issued and questioned what decision he was asking the board to review. The board sought advice from its attorney without ruling.
Mansfield characterized Widensky as politically motivated and campaigning against her. His separate land-use matter provides context for his criticism but doesn’t confirm or refute the accounts LeMoine and Harmon gave about their experiences.
Woodstock hired both officials following their Shandaken resignations. LeMoine joined Woodstock after building inspector Francis “Butch” Hoffman resigned. The Woodstock Town Board accepted Hoffman’s resignation effective Aug. 18 and appointed LeMoine zoning enforcement officer at $35.51 an hour effective the following day.
Harmon was hired separately at $30.16 an hour to replace code enforcement officer William Spencer, who left earlier this year for a similar position in Hurley. Harmon was scheduled to begin Aug. 21.
Their 2026 Shandaken rates were $30.87 an hour for LeMoine and $27.56 an hour for Harmon, according to the town’s annual salary resolution. The positions differ in duties and hours, so the hourly rates don’t provide a direct comparison of total compensation.
The Town Board appointed Rich Drao as Shandaken’s part-time code enforcement officer and building inspector on Aug. 17 at $30 an hour. Mansfield described the appointment as provisional while the town considers how to staff the department over the longer term.
Under the town code, the three-member ethics board’s opinions are advisory and confidential. Mansfield disclosed the conclusion, but the board’s reasoning and the precise scope of its review weren’t public as of Aug. 21.
Noah Eckstein is the editor-in-chief of The Overlook. Send correspondence to noah@theoverlooknews.com.
