Mount Vernon Mayor Richard Thomas on Monday blasted a City Council resolution to give control of Memorial Field renovations to the county.

As construction crews worked at Memorial Field to bring the stadium back to life, a political battle is underway involving Mayor Richard Thomas, the city’s comptroller and its City Council.

The council passed a controversial resolution Friday night handing over control of renovations to the county. Thomas today said that as the chief executive officer of the city, it’s his job to fix Memorial Field and not turn it over to outsiders.

Thomas was heckled Friday for his move to evict the Kela Tennis Club from Memorial Field.  The mayor says he did it because it hasn’t paid rent in years and he wants to reclaim the city property to build an eight-lane track and grassy field by the fall.

The comptroller says he supports the mayor on reclaiming the city-owned land, but wishes all sides could come to the table.

City Council members say they will override any veto attempt by the mayor.