Donora council has selected Gilbert Szakal Jr. to fill the seat opened by Sonny Lawson’s recent retirement.

Dozens of citizens stormed out of council chambers in protest after the vote at Thursday’s meeting, and many vocalized indignation over council’s decision.

Szakal, who was approved on a 3-2 vote, previously served on council before losing his seat in a 2019 election. He will serve the remaining year and a half of Lawson’s term.

Many citizens felt council’s decision subverted their voice at the ballot box, and some said it reflects the current divisions between council members and Donora residents. Council continuously fractures on a number of issues. Often, Cindy Brice and Tom Thompson take one side and remaining council members take the other. Citizens have accused the council majority of suppressing their voice in local matters.

Some believe Szakal’s nomination represents furthering the council majority’s agenda while disregarding public sentiment.

“He’s a yes man,” Donora resident Michelle Kitchens said. “He’ll just go along with what most of the council wants to do.”

Council President Mike McDowell asserted that council carefully considered candidates and arrived at selecting Szakal as a practical measure.

“We thought Gilbert had the best experience for the position. We saw him as a good asset,” McDowell said. “He was also the first to apply. The other two applicants came in much later.”

Kitchens and former council member Walter J. Sloan also submitted letters of interest for the vacant seat. Council voted on neither, as Szakal’s affirmation preceded both.

Before the Szakal vote, and prompted by a citizen’s request, Brice and Thompson brought a motion to nominate former council candidate Matt Vitalbo for the seat. That failed on a 3-2 vote, with Brice and Thompson as Vitalbo’s only backers.

Last November, Thompson beat out Vitalbo and council member

DONORA • A7 FROM A1 Jane Ackerman in the general election. Vitalbo nearly won a seat and registered 20 more votes than Ackerman.

In January, Don Pavelko vacated his council seat to become mayor. Council nominated Ackerman to fill the seat over Vitalbo, even though he had won more public support two months earlier.

Brice, Thompson and many citizens hoped council nominations would reflect the November election results. After Szakal’s appointment, many expressed a concern that council’s actions undermined public will.

“If any member does not feel that they possess the maturity, fortitude or decency to accept criticism from the public, please do yourself and the community the courtesy of resigning,” Pavelko said. “Is it pettiness that leads some of you to continually make decisions that are against the will of the people? If the people wanted them in office, the ballots on Election Day would have reflected so.”

“We had elections and Vitalbo got the second most votes,” Brice said. “The people voted for him, not the other two.”

McDowell maintained that council has a prerogative to pursue its best interests.

“People will disagree and argue and be upset about almost anything we do,” he said. “But we have procedures to follow and a responsibility to do what’s best for the council and borough. Also, Matt wasn’t even on the nomination list.”

Brice and citizens also voiced a concern regarding advertising for the open seat. According to council members and Solicitor Steve Toprani, the borough must advertise the seat to the public for a period of time before the application deadline closes.

While some council members claimed the position was properly advertised online, others argued the website remains largely inaccessible to the public.

“No one knew about this site or where to find it,” Brice said.

Additionally, right before Szakal’s nomination, a citizen raised a question as to whether the previously vacant seat that Ackerman now fills was properly advertised. As Toprani began to address the concern, council members swiftly moved forward with the Szakal vote. The timing of the events produced a state of confusion before citizens ultimately left the chambers.

Council also passed a number of motions following the nomination process, including pursuing the placement of ads to find a new borough administrator, approving a property sale on Waddell Avenue and allocating American Relief Act funds for a new fire department siren and a