News
Surprising
vote at Council meeting
By Elizabeth Prata
Gray--The Gray Town Council considered the appointment
of four people to various committees, and the outcome
was surprising- the Chair voted not to appoint one
of the applicants.
Pam Wilkinson had applied for an alternate position
on the Ordinance Review Committee (ORC), and Tuesday
night at the regular Council meeting, she was interviewed.
The previous Council had instituted the protocols
for appointments to committees and codified these
protocols in their Council Rules. The procedure is
for the appointee to attend at least one meeting of
the Committee or Board to which they are applying,
and then appear before the Council in either workshop
or regular meeting to be interviewed. At the time,
Manager Mitchell A. Berkowitz had explained that installing
appointees to Council committees for up to three-year
terms is like hiring personnel, since the committee
member will be working on behalf of the Council. The
Council at that time wanted an opportunity to meet
the applicant and determine their skills and capacity
for completing their Committee charge.
What
does the ORC do?
The
Ordinance Review Committee drafts Town Ordinances
and amendments to Ordinances relating to zoning, subdivisions,
land use as requested or directed by the Town Council.
The Committee also offers advice, assistance and makes
recommendations to the Town Council, Town Manager,
Town Committee and Town staff as to needed changes
in land use ordinances, again, as directed by the
Town Council. The Town's Zoning Ordinances also requires
that the ORC review any proposed changes to land-use
ordinances before passage by the Council.
Interviewing
the candidate
Ms.
Wilkinson had served as Councilor for six years, three
of those as Council Chair, stepping down this past
June when her term ended. After a two-month hiatus
from her civic activities, she then applied for the
non-voting alternate position on the ORC.
In her interview Tuesday night, Ms. Wilkinson was
asked by Councilor Denise Duda why, if the Town's
zoning ordinance requires the ORC to review proposed
zoning changes, did the Council under her leadership
did not do so in many cases. Ms. Wilkinson had been
the impetus behind a town-wide review of all segments
of the zoning ordinance, a process that drew criticism,
controversy, and took two years to bring to a vote.
The vote, however, occurred just after the new Council
had been voted into office in June, and the proposal
is currently tabled.
Ms. Wilkinson responded that technically the drafts
are supposed to go to ORC, but the Council certainly
did inform them of changes to different segments.
"You are correct, though, that communications
could have been better." She assured the Council
that as a member of ORC she would see to it that communications
would improve.
The
Chair votes no
Councilor John Welch asked Ms. Wilkinson's purpose
for wanting to be on the ORC, and Ms. Wilkinson said
that zoning is her forte, "I love working in
the zoning realm," she replied. She said she
would bring experience to the position, having seen
what works in the Town, and what doesn't work. She
said that she believes that the zoning should be looked
at in a segmented approach, and that there is so much
work to do that the ORC should meet twice per month,
not once. "More meetings at this time are necessary,"
she said.
When it came time for a vote, it was 4-1 with Chair
Gary Foster against. The motion passed and Ms. Wilkinson
will start her ORC duties at the next meeting.
In an interview after the meeting, Mr. Foster said
that he "Didn't think her vision was consistent
with the ORC, especially the way the Council wishes
to work with the ORC. For example, with regard to
the zoning ordinance, the Council sees a comprehensive
approach, the ORC wants to review the ordinances and
simplify them. Pam's vision was counter to that."
Sanborn irate
After the meeting adjourned, Gray resident Mark Sanborn,
also an ex-council chair, sat in the front row and
berated the Council as they packed up. "I can't
believe you four are still following this idiot! The
Chair should be impeached for what he did." Mr.
Sanborn continued at some length in that same vein,
following the departing audience members out of the
hall with heated vows to attend the next Council meeting.
Above, Sanborn, Monument file photo
