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Follow the rules to ensure public’s trust I really considered not writing this column, but I realized that wouldn’t be fair. After having blasted the Union City Council and their city attorney, Dennis Davenport, a few weeks ago in our South Fulton Citizen edition for something similar, I would hate to give the impression of favoritism. I have covered Fayetteville City Council for about a year now and I am usually impressed with the scope of knowledge displayed by the board. As a whole, they appear to be thoroughly informed on practically every one of the multitude of issues before them and they have certainly been of one mind (at least until about three months ago) when votes are cast. Enter the March 16 council meeting. It was a pretty regular meeting that included an incredibly thorough overview of the proposed increases in water and sewer fees and several other issues. At meeting’s end came the announcement that executive session would be needed to discuss a litigation issue. Okay. The vote was taken and in they went to the closed session. The few citizens left at the meeting exited. Of those few, only two of us remained. I had gone outside and, upon attempting to re-enter the building a few minutes later, found the front door locked. The remaining person was standing in the foyer and kindly let me in. Then we waited for executive session to end and the council chamber door to be re-opened to let the public back in. But that did not happen. The door did open and a single council member emerged. As it turns out, the executive session and the state-required public portion of the meeting following the executive session had both been adjourned without the door being opened for the public to re-enter and learn if any action had been taken in executive session or whether any vote was required. As for me, I entered the council chambers and began to inquire about the way the meeting ended. The city clerk was gracious and apologetic, immediately taking responsibility for the entire thing. My response to her, and I mean this, was that the responsibility did not rest on her shoulders. Quite the contrary. With the exception of Paul Oddo, who took office less than three months ago, the remainder of the mayor and council have many years’ experience in conducting and taking part in more public meetings than I can count. These people know their business, the business of the city and how things should be done. That’s what they say. Who am I to argue? Moments later, outside the building, Ken Steele was also apologetic, genuinely and politely citing the oversight that brought the meeting to an improper, that is illegal, end. Understand, I am not suggesting that anything nefarious occurred behind closed doors and I certainly believe that no action was taken on the litigation topic. I also know that executive session is a rare event in Fayetteville, with only one or two that I can recall occurring in the past year. So, I am absolutely willing to believe it was an unintended oversight, even for those who are acknowledged experts in the requirements of things like city governance, Georgia law and Robert’s Rules of Order. I suppose I will not be very popular with the council once this column hits the streets. But then, my popularity ended right after I began covering them last year, as soon as I began reporting on the Harold Simmons and then-Chief Johnny Roberts controversy and the city’s questionable treatment of its police officers. Perhaps it is not important that the seasoned veterans of elected boards occasionally forget to follow the rules laid out by Georgia law, rules laid out to inform and protect the public. And, truly we all make mistakes. Yet hand in hand with that reality is another. What happens if you violate a city law (ordinance) or fail to pay your water bill? All of us generally tend to remember the things most important to us: things like being aware of laws, things like picking up our paycheck, things like ensuring the public trust. login to post comments | Ben Nelms's blog
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