Resident and Pirate’s Booty founder Robert Ehrlich is not letting a little thing like an election get in his way of running the Village of Sea Cliff.
Ehrlich and three other men arrived at village hall on Monday, March 10, and said he was the newly appointed mayor, according to village officials
Ehrlich said the village staff was fired from their positions upon his arrival. According to the village, Ehrlich “demanded” office space and told staff members they could reapply for their roles.
The village identified two of the men who entered the building with Ehrlich as Jeff Knox and Arthur Liebold. The identity of the third person remains unknown.
“When informed that this claim was invalid and unsupported by law, he was asked to leave Village Hall at which point, Mr. Ehrlich and his associates became increasingly confrontational,” the village said in a statement.
The village said the group used profane language and verbally harassed village officials, creating a “hostile and disruptive environment that required police intervention.”
Ehrlich denied the village’s claims and defended himself on social media.
“Whatever they’re saying about me is wrong,” said Ehrlich in a video posted on Thursday, March 13, in a Sea Cliff resident Facebook group. Ehrlich said he is the “most generous man in Sea Cliff.”
“I have so many great ideas,” he said. “I love Sea Cliff from the bottom of my heart.”
The village will hold elections on Tuesday, March 18, for mayor and two trustee positions. Mayor Elena Villafane and Trustees James Versocki and Mark Sobel are all running unopposed.
Ehrlich did not enter any of the races but told residents on social media to vote for him as a write-in candidate.
Ehrlich has had a contentious past with Sea Cliff.
In 2004, he sued the village in federal court, which he lost and reinstituted in 2007 before bringing a state court action in 2008.
In state court, he sued the village, including the board of trustees, zoning board of appeals and planning board, mayor, village attorney, building inspector and members of each board in their “official and individual capacities” for federal claims of religious discrimination and violation of due process and equal protection, according to casetext.com.
The website said the court dismissed “all but one” of the federal claims and dismissed all defendants except the village and two individuals “as plaintiffs failed to present evidence supporting a federal claim against any of the remaining defendants.” The state court case was dismissed in 2008.
Previous reports said Ehrlich claims to have used the Citizen Empowerment Act to form the “Incorporated Village of Sea Cliff Residents,” of which he says he is the mayor.
Using the act, Ehrlich reportedly garners signatures to dissolve the current village government. According to the law, he would need 10% of the village population to do so, which would require approximately 500 Sea Cliff residents.
In Ehrlich’s video, posted to Facebook, he said he supports outdoor seating and a village-sponsored daycare center.
“Join me in supporting a vision where our town thrives with opportunity, connection, and pride!” Ehrlich wrote in the caption of his video.
“I’m with Rob he’s the man!,” commented Facebook user Kevin Nelson.
In its statement, the village said the municipality’s day-to-day operation will remain the same and will be managed by the board of trustees.
“The activities of daily governance are unchanged, and the Village of Sea Cliff continues to operate under the guidance of its duly elected board of trustees,” the village said.
“The Village of Sea Cliff takes the safety and well-being of its staff and residents seriously,” the village added.
