from the editor
An Opinion: Same Old Song and Dance
By Scott Laird
504 to 84. Those were the
official numbers in the recall election for
Vernonia City Councilor Kevin Hudson.
83% of the people who voted
said they didn’t want Kevin Hudson to
represent them anymore.
If you divide 504 by 84 it equals
exactly 6. By a margin of six to one,
voters said they were unhappy with the
decisions Hudson has been making on
their behalf.
52.6% of registered voters
returned their ballots in this election.
Those numbers are facts, and
facts don’t lie.
Those facts should have sent a
clear and concise message to Councilors
Willow Burch and Marilyn Nicks--the
recall election was not just a reflection
on Hudson’s performance and decisions,
it was a reflection on all three of them.
People are paying attention and they are
extremely unhappy.
The citizens are sending these
Councilors a message.
Is that message getting
through? Apparently not. Burch and
Nicks showed no intention of changing
their tune last week, acting as if the
Hudson recall hadn’t even taken place.
Votes they cast on critical city decisions
showed they are still uninterested in
listening to the majority, and only intend
to do whatever it takes to push forward
their personal agenda. They have to be
recalled.
Last week Council failed to
reach a decision in two important
issues facing them—splitting the vote
on naming a replacement Councilor
for Hudson’s vacated seat, and then
delaying any decision about hiring a City
Administrator after completing a day
of interviews with two applicants and
reaching no agreement to offer either of
them a contract.
No decision was reached on
two critical issues and no progress was
made to move city business forward.
But possibly even worse, even after the
Hudson recall, Burch or Nicks showed
no remorse for the damage they have
caused to pur community. Did they admit
that they may have misjudged what the
citizen expect from them? Did Burch
or Nicks appear introspective in any
way--that they were re-examining any
of their decisions? Did they do anything
that might persuade those considering
a recall to change their minds? The
answer is clearly, No.
The Hudson recall election was
an opportunity for all of us to take the
pulse of our community, to get a sense
of whether the citizens approved or
disapproved of the direction our elected
officials have been taking us for the last
five months. To me the message was
clear.
Personally I have been very
outspoken about recent decisions by our
City Council. I know if the results of the
Hudson election had been reversed, with
over 80% of voters expressing approval
for Hudson’s performance, I would
certainly be reconsidering my stance.
If the election results had been reversed
you would be reading a very different
article right now.
Maybe I misunderstood what was
really happening? Maybe I misjudged
the mood of the community? Maybe I
need to rethink my position?
Not Burch and Nicks. They still
don’t get it. 83% of the people voting to
recall Hudson means nothing to them.
When Council met on June
21st to try to select a replacement
Councilor for Hudson’s seat, they were
hoping to make an appointment so the
new Councilor could participate in the
next two important upcoming business
decisions: selection of the permanent
City Administrator and the second
Due Process Hearing for Mike Kay,
scheduled for Monday June 27. Two
critical decisions that are being closely
watched by the community and have the
potential to be controversial.
Here was a chance for Burch
and Nicks to show they were willing
to work together with the rest of their
Council. To show the community that
they got the message the voters sent
when they recalled Hudson by a 6 to 1
margin. To show they understood that
the majority strongly disagree with their
previous decisions.
After the interviews and
discussion, Councilors Burch and Nicks
chose Victoria Peters as their choice to
replace Hudson. In my opinion, Peters
is someone who potentially has a lot
to offer our community, she is just not
qualified and lacks the experience to be a
City Councilor right now, especially with
all the big decisions looming around the
corner.
Councilors Randy Parrow and
Mayor Josette Mitchell chose Brett
Costley, who had previously served on
the City Planning Commission and was
elected twice to City Council and served
for ten years. Costley wasn’t even
Burch’s second choice. Costley, who
stepped down as City Councilor last year
to devote more time to his family, said in
his interview that he had applied at the
request of numerous citizens who had
asked him to step back up and help.
Loads of city government
experience versus no experience? A
twice elected official with community
backing versus someone who is
virtually unknown? Someone who can
hit the ground running versus someone
who would need training and time to
understand the nuances of how the city
functions?
But there we were—at a
deadlock. Councilor Parrow asked
his colleagues to make a decision that
was best for the citizens of Vernonia.
Councilors Burch and Nicks refused to
back down.
Councilor Burch, who is
becoming quite infamous for making
outrageous and inflammatory statements
in public, once again didn’t disappoint,
getting off a handful of them, including
this zinger and showing her true colors:
“If I change my vote to Brett
Costley and we bring him in, then Randy
will be happy and you [Mayor Mitchell]
will be happy because the majority vote
will then bring Bill Haack back and is
that what we’re all sitting here for—is
that the deal?”
Apparently, for Burch, this
decision about who to appoint to Council
really came down to making sure that
previous Interim City Administrator
Haack doesn’t survive the interview
and hiring process. Burch voted to fire
Haack in May but then agreed he should
be given a fair, impartial and unbiased
interview and chance to win back his
job. It sounded to me like she had
already made up her mind.
Councilor Parrow again offered
Nicks a chance to change her vote. Here
was her chance to compromise, and
work with the rest of the Council. To
start the healing she says she wants for
our community. Not surprisingly, she
declined, staying true to Burch, as she
has in every important Council decision
she has made so far. Toe the party line,
don’t vote against the block, keep the
agenda moving forward and safe.
So no decision was reached.
Council did decide to re-interview
Costley and Peters on Friday June 24,
but of course they couldn’t reach an
agreement then either. Burch and Nicks
stood their ground and blocked progress.
This was after the City Administrator
interviews, where not surprisingly
the four Councilors could not reach a
majority decision as well. On June 24
Councilor Nicks again asked for more
time to consider the Council appointment
decision, and Council agreed to revisit
it again on Monday June 27, the same
evening they will consider the Kay case,
which will also be heard by only the
four Councilors. I wonder if Burch has
already made up her mind about that
issue as well?
One other thing about Councilor
Nicks. For the City Administrator
interviews, each Councilor was asked
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The Third
Member
june28
2011
3
Publisher and Managing Editor
Scott Laird
503-367-0098
scott@vernoniasvoice.com
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to chose a citizen to sit on a panel that
would interview the applicants and
offer feedback about them. Nicks chose
someone from outside the community,
who lives in Columbia County, but is
not a resident of Vernonia. Someone
who doesn’t pay city taxes, who won’t
be directly affected by decisions the
City Administrator will make and who
doesn’t vote for Vernonia City Council.
She couldn’t find a qualified citizen from
within her own constituency?
It looks like nothing has
changed. Burch and Nicks are still
whistling the same tune. They just don’t
get it. Apparently the facts of the recall
election mean nothing to them.
My position has not changed as
well. We still need to recall Burch and
Nicks, now more than ever.
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