"... waiver the bylaws for this one time, and one time only" - Vice Chair Ripley.
[Town of Paris, Selectmen's bylaws, Section 9: "These bylaws can be waived on any occasion by majority vote of the Board...."]
Convenient. That way a selectman, who knows and follows the bylaws, can be "trapped by his own words" by opposing a vote brought about by tricky maneuvering. The situation will be calculated to look like the other selectmen have an earnest desire to do "the right thing," but the opposing selectman does not.
Background:
Because there are some decisions that the powers that be want to make but know will not be popular, this "special meeting" was arranged to happen while one critical and straightforward selectman was known to be out of town, and the second, equally straightforward and tenacious selectman was not in on the plan, even though he was in town and, in the end, was notified. Never mind the public. It has been said the interim town manager didn't even know.
To muddy the waters even further, the agenda for a special meeting by definition can include - and do business on - only those items as advertised.
So, here's a good plan to insure the public is distracted from the purpose of the questionable meeting: get the sympathy of the audience, by finding a real need that must be met - such as approval of a payroll warrant ( never mind that could be done next week, as originally planned). Next, manage for the straightforward and tenacious selectman, the sole dissenting voter on the board attending tonight, to be made to look as bad as possible to the audience, because he will most certainly not vote for things that are done for the wrong reason, even if it makes him look bad.
4:50 pm Thursday
poorly advertised quickly thought up "special" meeting.
Even so: 41 Paris voters, 2 reporters, seated in town office,
front table vacant.
Chair strolls in, notes crowd, scowls more than usual,
paces near table, flips open phone, scowls, dials.
Moments later police chief shows up
Stands amiably by door.
Selectman 1 arrives
NPC-TV cameraman sets up.
Enter Interim Town Mgr, 2,3,4 selectmen.
Meeting starts, progresses...
Chairman I: Item 3 - approval of warrant item....
Selectman G: Point of order!
...had a regularly scheduled meeting next week...
...notice I received specified 2 items, not 3rd item.
...bylaws say "No business may be conducted that isn't...."
Ch. I: We didn't approve a scheduled meeting for next week
...an oversight on all our parts...
Reporter: We've ["Advertiser Democrat"] been advised by the town clerk that there was a meeting next Tuesday.
Ch. I: ...that's not my conversation I had with her....
interruption: Selectman R: I move we pay warrants....
Sel. G: Point of order - You know the rules, and you still...
Sel. R: I know what you're doing, Ray..you're..you're raising a point of order....
[back and forth and back and forth]
Sel. R: Help me out here; what do we need to do to be able to approve these warrants?
Sel. G: That's for you to do! I'm not going to do your work for you.
Sel. R: motion...waiver the bylaws for this one time and one time only, that we may add this item to the agenda.
[Vote takes place and passes, Selectman G stands his ground.]
Starting the process
Looking for a new town manager, M.Thorne will retire in February.
Discussion hovers around advertising.
And, it would appear, a great need for haste.
Ch. I: Do we have any ads out yet?
Sel. G: ...recommend MMA listing...I hope you are looking for a qualified candidate?
Ch. I: [re. "you" are looking]You're amongst us, Ray, so it's not we, it's you, too, you're on the board of selectmen
Sel. G: I know that's my desire [re. the qualified candidate] but I'm not sure about your's.
Ch. I: But we...I..didn't ask for your opinion, either, so...
The Crowd: ooooooooooo....
Ch. I: Quiet please
Sel. R: I make a motion that we put an ad process together and collect résumés and on Fridays, weekly, we review the ones that have come in - and any of us - Raymond, Lloyd, Glen, you, see anything you like then we schedule an interview for the following week. That's a motion.
Discussion continues, unravels,
one or two cogent thoughts emerge,
crowd is mesmerized.
Sel. R: [repeating motion] We advertise, we collect résumés, peruse them, and if anybody sees anything they like, set up an interview with..the following week..and we'll do that until such time as we....[sentence left unfinished]
[The reader will note that there was no mention of hiring, salary, timeline, what kind of qualifications, planet of origin, animal, vegetable or mineral; just a great deal of LET'S GET THIS DONE. ASAP.]
Item Five.
Sel. R: I'm reading this motion exactly from what Geoffrey Hole gave us.
Ch. I: To do?
Sel. R: Yes. [reads from paper] I move that we ratify the action taken at our June 22, 2009 meeting to terminate the manager's contract, without cause.
Selectmen Y.: Second!
Ch. I: Discussion?
Sel. G: Yes! I just want it to be known that I was opposed to the original action, and I'm opposed to this action, and I am voting No.
Ch. I: Okay.
[trap: ready]
Sel. R: So, you're going to go against what the town attorney recommends us to do?
[trap: set]
Sel.G: That's correct.
[gotcha]
Sel. R: Okay. I..just make sure we have that as a ...have that.. a.. noted in the minutes that he's going against what the town attorney recommended.
Ch. I: All in favor?
Vote was passed, 3-1
Selectman G stood his ground.
The end.
[Readers are reminded that, on this site in recent posts, there has been discussion of, and links to, further information on "ratifying."]
