Bill McKenna’s eight-year tenure as Woodstock’s top elected official is ending much as it began, amid disputes about how the job should be done and how he’s carried them out.
His fifth and final term will be remembered less for his years of municipal stewardship than for hiring Michael Innello, a Level 3 sex offender convicted of sexually abusing an unconscious woman and possessing child pornography, without informing fellow board members of the new employee’s background. Revelations of Innello’s past ignited a governance crisis, a petition drive, and calls for McKenna’s resignation.
McKenna, appointed in 2017, championed Woodstock’s “ban the box” policy that removed criminal convictions from job applications, and defended his decision to hire Innello on those grounds. Now, what began as a personnel matter has escalated into a public reckoning over transparency, judgment, and the limits of second chances in positions of public trust.
It’s a far cry from McKenna’s goals, in a February interview, to “do what we need to do to keep the ship sailing.” He counted among his proudest moments helping coordinate with RUPCO to establish Woodstock Commons, an intergenerational campus with 53 apartments for seniors, artists and families. His tenure includes high-profile disputes that include the protracted fight over the so-called Shady Dump and his refusal to fire a local cop accused of making racist and sexually charged remarks.
For many Woodstock residents, including almost 300 who signed an online petition calling for Innello’s immediate firing, McKenna’s defense rings hollow. He blamed fellow board members for not doing their own background checks into the maintenance worker.
“I didn’t think it was pertinent,” McKenna said in an interview last month. “It didn’t affect how he could do the job.”
Woodstock’s Police Chief of Police Clayton Keefe disagreed.
“I absolutely should have been notified earlier,” he said.
McKenna does have defenders. His confidential secretary, Melanie Marino, wrote in Hudson Valley One on Wednesday that the controversy over Innello was a “present-day hunt and trial of fear” and said Innello was working to rebuild his life after serving his prison sentence.
She also said she’s known Innello for years, visiting him regularly while he was incarcerated, and “I welcome Michael into my community, and into my home,” sparking speculation that the duo was involved in a personal relationship. Marino, who couldn’t be reached for comment, praised McKenna as “a brave warrior and shining star.”
In an interview last week, McKenna responded to a recent townwide spending freeze by rising in a huff, grabbing a stack of bills and slamming them on his desk. He said the board had twice voted not to pay about $650,000 in outstanding vouchers, prompting him to impose the freeze to prevent the town from incurring more debt.
McKenna said the move was fiscally responsible and hinted that it could be “petty” retaliation over the Innello dispute, though he stopped short of directly accusing the incoming leadership. He maintained there was money in the budget to pay the bills and that revenue targets were being met.
The supervisor described how the town’s budget, reserves and capital project accounts function, explaining which expenses were preapproved and didn’t impact the annual budget and how savings allowed the town to avoid borrowing. He said these reserves gave Woodstock flexibility to fund emergencies and projects without interest costs. McKenna pushed back against the board’s request for an itemized spreadsheet of the unpaid vouchers, saying it was not his job and that members could review the bills in person.
McKenna criticized board members for not doing their “homework” before meetings and for grandstanding, saying they should arrive prepared with questions and information rather than staging performative objections in public.
All of that said, the fallout from the Innello revelations in July was swift. Calls for McKenna’s resignation grew louder. Board members accused him of withholding critical information and stonewalling inquiries. McKenna said his decision to keep Innello’s background under wraps was “not pertinent” to the job and that Innello was kept away from children—a fact disputed by observers at the town’s summer camp.
On July 22, the town board voted to terminate Innello “effective immediately.” McKenna refused to sign the paperwork, prolonging the standoff for two more weeks until two council members filed the paperwork themselves. On Aug. 6, The Overlook broke the news of Ulster County’s confirmation that Innello had been terminated.
The Innello case has become an unavoidable part of McKenna’s legacy. Supporters credit his years of service and his willingness to stand by his convictions. Critics say the controversy exposed deeper flaws in his leadership—a preference for unilateral decision-making, a resistance to oversight, and a tendency to personalize disputes.
His departure in December will clear the way for Anula Courtis, the board member who led the push to remove Innello and is running unopposed to succeed him. Her approach, and whether she can repair the town’s frayed trust in government, will define Woodstock’s next chapter.
The entire affair will remain a touchstone in that transition, a reminder that a single decision can reshape a political career. The question about who is best served to serve the public isn’t about policy. It’s about judgment.
Noah Eckstein is the editor-in-chief of The Overlook. Send correspondence to noah@theoverlooknews.com.