No
conflict of interest at Planning Board Council discusses sensitive issue
By Elizabeth Prata
Gray--When Gray resident Pat Watson discovered that
the Chair of the Planning Board is married to the
woman who takes minutes for the Board, a paid position,
she became troubled. Ms. Watson sent a letter to the
Council Tuesday night which Chair Gary Foster read
aloud.
In it, Ms. Watson said that the Council Rules states
that no two members of Board may serve on the same
Board at the same time. She wrote that although the
minutes taker is not serving as a member, that she
believes that the position is a conflict of interest
and a violation of the spirit of that portion of the
Council Rules.
The Planning Board, along with the Zoning Board and
Board of Assessment Review are quasi-judicial. Decisions
from those boards may not be interfered with by Council.
Decisions from that Board may only be appealed in
Court.
The minutes of the Boards represent the official record
and sometimes form the basis of lawsuits. Minutes
are extremely important since they are supposed to
be an accurate and true reflection of events, discussions
and official decisions made at the Board level. As
Ms. Watson stated in her correspondence, the position
of Chair on a Board is influential and the position
of recorder is also important.
It was the nature of these two positions and their
importance to Board proceedings that prompted her
to write the letter, with a request for Council to
review the situation.
Councilors took up the issue and discussed whether
it seemed to constitute a violation of the Council
Rules. Since the recorder was not a member of the
Board there was no violation, they all agreed. Further,
the Council said, since the minutes are either accepted
or rejected by a full vote of all members present
at the Planning Board meetings, there was a check
and balance, and an opportunity for members to express
concerns if there was an issue with the record's reflection
of actual events.
Councilor Welch said that he did not think there was
any violation, and unless there was an allegation
then it was best to move on. Vice-Chair Upham agreed
and Chair Gary Foster said, "Thank you for bringing
this issue before us. We did review it and decided
that there was no action we need to take."
