Paradise sewer board debates Barber's resignation

During the last episode of “The Middle Aged and the Sewerless” everyone was wondering if this was the last they’d see of thrice resigned Paradise Board member Janis Barber.

Would newly appointed county commissioner and lawyer Claude Burlingame assume command of the next meeting? Would board members Dewey Arnold and Terry Caldwell come back to the board table if Barber was sitting there?

These stories and more in this issue of everyone’s favorite governmental soap opera, aka the Plains Sewer project.

Viewers to this past week’s spectacle, which included an expanded group of anti-sewer residents who came ready to boo and hiss, got the answer to the first bit of intrigue when just minutes before the meeting was scheduled to begin, Barber walked in and took a seat at the end of the head table.

She then tried to call the meeting to order, which lit a fuse under Arnold and Caldwell, who vehemently protested against Barber’s presence at the table. An extended argument then erupted over whether or not Barber’s third resignation, which she has rescinded each time, was legit given the fact the board did not vote to accept the latest resignation.

That subject brought howls of anguish from the sewer foes.

And while board members and proponents of the proposed $4.5 million and growing sewer project Don Stamm and Jane McFadden moved once again to suspend the rules of order, the audience grew louder in their objections to Barber’s presence.

“Her [Barber’s] seat is vacant,” said Caldwell, who was clearly disturbed by Barber’s presence and the theatrics that have been involved. “She resigned in writing and verbally. She is no longer a member of this board”.

Caldwell’s objections were joined by local resident and engineer Katy French, who advised “she needs to be removed from the table before any meeting can start. It’s a done deal”.

French, who has been a leader of the anti-sewer project, continued.

“I talked with the county attorney and she and two other attorneys agree this is illegal to proceed, the resignation stands”, said French.

None of that prompted Barber to leave her seat as she had done the week before. In fact, Barber tried to call the meeting to order, with backing from Burlingame, a non-resident of Paradise who is also not a Sewer Board member.

“She is OK,” Burnlingame said, “she can stay”.

Following another attempt to suspend Robert’s Rules of Order by Stamm, Board Rreasurer Arnold read a letter from the county attorney which he said outlines that the vacancy on the board must be filled by a vote among local residents, and that the board in the meantime would be required to appoint a temporary replacement.

That brought a protest from Burlingame who said, “No formal board action accepting the resignation has been made”.

Those words prompted Caldwell to engage in a verbal duel with Burlingame arguing as they had the week before that Barber’s resignation in writing and during the public meeting meant no Board approval was necessary.

“The resignation announcement was in the minutes of the meeting and we voted to accept those minutes,” Caldwell said. “Claude, it appears you are taking a personal interest in driving this sewer through. What personal interest do you have? You worked for Bridger (Bischoff, the property owner/developer at the center of the sewer controversy) 20 years ago. You are in violation for a conflict of interest and are out of order. You should be removed from the meeting”.

As Stamm continued to press for suspension of the rules and going ahead with a vote on a Memo of Understanding (MOU) to sell property related to the project to the Board, Caldwell protested.

“We will not proceed with her at the table,” Caldwell said. “We are here to represent the people.”

Caldwell then accused the proponents that they were negotiating with Burlingame in private.

From there, the meeting disintegrated into another motion to suspend the rules, calls for a vote on the MOU, which Barber, McFadden and Stromm all voted “aye” for — a move loudly protested by the crowd on hand in the church property sewing room in Paradise.

“No!” shouted the audience.

“You [Janis] are not on the Board, you have no vote here,” said French.

“The county attorney made it clear she is not on the board,” Caldwell added.

An official written statement from Sanders County Attorney Naomi Leisz states that, “the real question here is whether or not the public will accept this decision as a legitimate board action/decision. Whether or not the citizens accept a Board decision when the legitimacy of the board itself is being questioned?"

Leisz went on to advise those involved that the lack of established by-laws by the Sewer Board may be in question.

“What we do have is that under Montana law a vacancy was created by a verbal and written resignation,” Leisz wrote. “The code does not address the rescinding of a written resignation. So we move on to the bylaws and other collateral resources. However, I do not believe the bylaws address this particular factual situation either. The convoluted unfolding of events regarding the Board of Directors here is problematic.”

Leisz also said that a broader concern was that “these small governing boards fail to adopt a comprehensive operating framework to begin with. This would avoid many controversies”.

Had the board set up such rules, the governing body would be legitimized.

“This legitimizes your governing body and ensures the democratic process. The citizens then respect the authority and respect the process. When you have chaos, like I see happening here, unfortunately the outcome is suspect,” Leisz concluded.

No such parliamentary rules have been established by the current Sewer Board, or its predecessor, of which all former members have either quit or been recalled.

After more debate about the matter, Caldwell announced, “This meeting is over, it is out of order and illegal”.

With that he and Arnold left the room. The rest of the board stayed inside the building for several minutes before coming out and heading home.

No meeting was apparently scheduled during the gathering.