LETTER: Ethics chairman: Newburg fire chief should be replaced

To Ozaukee Press:
    To the residents of Newburg, the Town of Trenton and the Town of Saukville and members of the Newburg Fire Department:
    I am a resident of Newburg, and I am very concerned about issues that are going on in our village — most importantly, actions by Newburg Fire Chief Mark Chesak that I believe are misconduct while in office.
    Chief Chesak came up to me at the gas station next to Piggly Wiggly in West Bend. He said hello and wondered why the Village of Newburg Ethics Commission, of which I am the chairperson, was bothering to look into the ethics complaint filed by a trustee against his wife Rena, a former village trustee who is now the village president.
    I really felt like he was trying to persuade me to try to have the charge dismissed or dropped. He was complaining that it was just a waste of money.
    His wife was found guilty of the ethics complaint.
    Another allegation of improper use of the influence of his office was brought to the attention of the Ethics Commission.
    I feel as citizens we deserve better than this. It is time to request that the Newburg Fire Department act responsibly and immediately replace Mark Chesak as fire chief.
    I don’t want to make it look like one rotten apple is spoiling all the apples. The members of the fire department do great things and should be commended for what they all do for our communities.
    But Chief Chesak overstepped his bounds on this and I feel he cannot be trusted in this type of position any more.  He has proven that he does not deserve our respect by acting inappropriately.
                       Michael Heili
Newburg