Angry Crowd Meets
Selectboard
By M. D. Drysdale

A special selectboard meeting called by newly-elected chair Stephen Webster brought out an angry crowd Monday evening, questioning why the meeting was necessary and why its business should be held in secret.

The questions, however, did not prevent an executive session from being called. More than an hour later, the board adjourned in open session without taking any official action.

The special meeting was called via email from Webster Friday afternoon to the other selectboard members and the town manager, apparently to talk about the future of the expansion of town offices. The announcement specified that an executive session would likely be held.

The request for an executive session to discuss "real estate purchase options" mirrored a request that Webster made at the March 18 selectboard meeting, during a discussion of what to do with the municipal offices. However, the selectboard at that time refused to go along with it.

The chairman’s Friday call for a special meeting soon made its way via emails to members of the Municipal Building Committee and others. As a result, more than 25 people turned out at the Gifford Medical Center conference room. Most were in an angry mood, convinced that Webster was attempting a sneaky move to overturn the results of a Town Meeting vote on enlarging the town offices.

That vote, passing by 719-694, authorized the selectboard to spend a previously-approved $1.2 million bond issue, not on the existing town offices, but on establishing new town offices in the former food co-op store on Pleasant Street.

Questions Fly

As the meeting began, Webster was peppered with questions about how the meeting was warned, and why The Herald wasn’t notified in time to publish the notice.

Former selectman Damon Lease, who was defeated by Webster in a bid for reelection, said he "had a sense that people are trying to hide this (meeting). It could have been published" in a daily newspaper, he noted.

Reading from the statute regarding special meetings, Webster responded that "The meeting was properly warned."

The notice was posted at the East Randolph Store, Floyds, and the town clerk’s office, he said, and The Herald was notified via email.

Though two daily newspapers are also "official newspapers," he noted, they have not asked to be notified of special meetings.

The decision to ask the board for an executive session was also controversial. Resident Chuck Webb, also citing statutes, asked for assurance that "you are going to discuss something totally unknown to the community." Webster affirmed he was.

Shortly thereafter he called an end to audience participation and moved the executive session. Joined by Selectmen Ken Goss and Joe Voci, he obtained a 3-2 majority. Selectmen Jim Hutchinson and Larry Townsend voted no.

The atmosphere got a little more tense when Michael Penrod, a member of the Municipal Building Committee, announced, "I’m sorry but I will not leave."

Webster had anticipated that problem, however, and moved the selectboard to an adjoining conference room. Going with the board were Town Manager Peter Butterfield and the two top officials from DuBois & King Engineers, Inc., President Bill Baumann Rick Goodall.

DuBois & King had been contracted to do the engineering for enlarging the municipal offices at its existing location. A move to Pleasant Street, therefore, would deny business to the company.

Several in the crowd voiced their disapproval after the selectboard had left the room.

"They are taking our vote away," said one.

"He’s taking over the town," said another, referring to Chairman Webster.

No Motions

The board reappeared after more than an hour to face more criticism from the crowd that still remained—including complaints about the inclusion of Baumann and Goodall in the meeting.

No business was transacted at that point, but Webster said he would move as quickly as possible to make public the matter being discussed. He told The Herald that he hoped "we can say something" at next Tuesday’s regular selectboard meeting, scheduled for 6 p.m. at the Randolph Technical Career Center.

Though he was opposed to going into executive session, for lack of sufficient information, Selectman Townsend said the next day that he believed the session was appropriate. The discussion, he said, was amicable and did not break down into two camps over the municipal building question.

"The conversation seemed to be well together on this (new invormation)," he said. He said he thought the substance of the conversation could be revealed very soon.

Town Manager Butterfield also said yesterday that he felt the discussion had been a proper one for executive session.

After the session, Webster pledged to involve the Municipal Building Committee in the discussion. But Penrod, who is a member, said Tuesday afternoon that "I haven’t heard word one about a meeting."

"I see how little influence we have," he declared.