Dunkirk Councilwoman Natalie Luczkowiak criticized Mayor Kate Wdowiasz’s veto of a council move to return a cleaner to the Dunkirk Senior Center.

The Dunkirk Common Council has passed a second resolution to return a janitor to the city Senior Center, attempting to move past Mayor Kate Wdowiasz’s veto of its first vote.

Council members unanimously approved the new resolution Tuesday, while acknowledging they expect Wdowiasz to offer another veto. The new resolution was a “walk-on” which was not on the original council agenda, and was not read out.

Wdowiasz was not at Tuesday’s meeting. She is reportedly at a conference in Lake Placid.

The mayor halted the practice of sending city janitors to the Senior Center in January. She cited the city’s financial crisis, and Dunkirk’s original contract with the Senior Center, in her veto of the attempt to return the cleaner.

Councilwoman Natalie Luczkowiak slammed the veto.

“I wanted to make clear the city has, for many decades, provided cleaning services to the Senior Center,” she said. “That particular person was let go, (and that was) not directed by the council, by the way. We will be updating the current resolution and replacing the previous cleaner with one of the part time cleaners we have for a few hours a week. We have a full time and two part time cleaners for City Hall and (the adjacent Stearns Building).”

Luczkowiak continued, “The mayor’s stating fiscal responsibility and legal obligation for a veto is misleading, and prompts me to explain: With the elimination of a worker that was not in the 2025 budget to remove, (it) would leave money to pay for a cleaner if we were not to update the resolution. That’s just one example of how we could afford it. And per reports of late, these past few months we are doing well financially. I mean, we should be, with an 84% tax increase. … The biggest irony of all are five from City Hall, including the mayor, are in Lake Placid this week for a conference.”

The councilwoman added, “Both parties have consistently acted as if an agreement has existed, therefore an implied contract is recognized. This long standing practice raises a binding obligation.”

Councilman-at-Large Nick Weiser also commented on the Senior Center situation.

“As council members we’ve all heard from many residents,” which led them to approve the original resolution, he began. Weiser claimed the council was not aware of the details of the city’s 1993 contract with the Senior Center when it passed the resolution.

Rather than override Wdowiasz’s veto, “council has worked together on a temporary solution,” he continued. “Tonight we’ll be introducing a new resolution that makes clear council’s intent that cleaning services be provided at the Senior Center for two hours, three days a week through the end of this calendar year.”

Weiser called for the city and Senior Center to “revisit and update the contract before next year’s budget process.”

Councilwoman Abby Zatorski, the only “no” vote on the original resolution, voted “yes” this time. She did express a concern about the wording of the new resolution — wryly stating that, as written, City Attorney Elliot Raimondo could be asked to clean the center.

Weiser asked Zatorski if she would like an amendment to the resolution clarifying that city janitorial staff must be used for the cleaning. Zatorski said not to bother, because “the mayor’s going to veto it anyway.”