MONTICELLO – The Sullivan County Legislature may not look for a new tourism agency this year, but put it off until next year.

The new legislature voted narrowly last week voted to issue a request for proposals to consider alternatives to the current long time agency, Sullivan County Visitors’ Association.

Instead, the legislature’s Community and Economic Development Committee voted unanimously Thursday to give the SCVA a new contract through December 31 and then issue an RFP to all interested agencies for 2013.

Committee Chairman Ira Steingart said lawmakers weighed the public comment received last week and decided they did not want to disrupt the marketing plans in place already for this year.  Citizen opposition was unanimous during last week’s monthly legislature meeting.

Weiner (file): "We do a good job"

SCVA Board Member Jill Weiner, owner of Earth Girl Pottery, said she was pleased that the new legislature listened to the voice of the people, who last week spoke out against an almost immediate change in tourism agencies. She noted the tourism season is about to start in earnest in the next few months and it would have been detrimental to change now.

The SCVA will submit a proposal when the RFP is drafted and released since “we do a good job,” said Weiner.

“As soon as the RFP is issued, it still has to be written, or course, we want the job; we’re very good at it,” Weiner said.

Steingart, meanwhile, denied any validity to critics who said a backroom deal was struck with other Democratic political operatives to chance agencies.

“I believe that they felt we could have handled it different as far as the timing, but as far as any backroom dealing, I have no knowledge of that nor do I believe that happened,” Steingart said. “I just think it was some new legislators wanting to do the right thing.”

The full legislature will vote on the change of plans later this month.