GilfordGrok

Let the Letter writing begin!

Doug has one in the Citizen, along with Mrs. Boucher and  Bill McClean

Editor, The Citizen: On March 12th Selectman Grant and Selectman Benavides voted to terminate Town Administrator Evans Juris. As the former Chairman of the Board of Selectmen, I am bewildered by this vote.

Yup, it certainly showed in the video.  It certainly seemed from your opening remarks that you believed that you had the situation well in hand - as I said on Meet The New Press, that was the run up to "kick the can down the street".  It was VERY clear that you did not want to deal with a pressing issue in town.  After all, it seems very clear to me that you and Mr. Juris made a political bet to influence the political atmosphere here in Gilford.

This you did - it is just that the end game hasn't worked out the way you wanted.  Yes, John lost the election by 20-odd votes - perhaps within the margin of error that your accusation may have made?  However, while Evans was saved from John, you unleashed a sequence of events that ended up in that which you were trying to prevent.

Yup, Mrs. Boucher, meet Mr. Law of Unintended Consequences. 

Selectman Benavides stated,"Despite what has been said, if there is a way to work this out I am all for it. As a man of faith I have to turn the other cheek". Shortly after saying he would like to work things out, he voted to terminate Town Administrator Evans Juris. Why?

I'm no mind reader, but I have heard people say the same thing that Gus did, even when it is obvious that there really is no way to recover that situation of which they spoke.  I'm not sure of why the "faith" statement came up.  My only take on that is while as a man of faith, that may well apply to him as an individual but it does not apply to a governmental office.

I wish both Grant and Benavides would have listened to what Town Counsel suggested and not deal with the situation until all parties could come together to air out all of the concerns.

It is clear from the recording that they did - they just came to a different conclusion to how to deal with the situation.  Again, you have used the word "defy".  Perhaps in your mind, they "defied" the Town Counsel.  We, and You, do not know that given the fact that Connie stated that she had talked with the Town Counsel herself (ditto Gus).  You had, at the time, no good knowledge of what was said in those two separate conversations. 

And I hope they were separate in order to be within the Right To Know Law!  A good deal of that video, recorded by the Town cameras, show YOU berating Connie and Gus for not calling you.  THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN a serious problem with regards to the RTK law.  And there you were, the Chair of the Select Board, saying (in essence), "Forget the law, call me!".

I thought the Chair was supposed to uphold the law, not cause others to break it....

Since Selectmen Grant and Benavides were elected by the people to serve the town, an explanation is warranted. A petition is being circulated and I would appreciate the concerned citizens that called me, join me in signing it. It is truly a sad situation for our town to be going through something that could certainly have been dealt with differently.

This is just SO rich.  How many times did the Board NOT make decisions? There you were in your opening statement stating that the Board will do nothing, then again trying to get them to do nothing, and now that there is no political fallout on you part, you berate Connie and Gus all because they refused to do your bidding from the lofty position of Chair.

Methinks it may be that in not kowtowing to your demands, admonition, and outburst, they proved themselves to be more capable to react decisively and appropriately.  It is only now, free of the office of being Chair, that you are so willing to "beat feet" and hurry along the talk.

Politics?  Yes, indeed