Echo Chamber: The Local Chatter (April 29)
BUFFALO FISCAL STABILITY AUTHORITY (THE CONTROL BOARD) is hosting a Public Forum on Monday, May 5th in the Common Council Chambers, 13th floor, City Hall from 5:30 p.m. - 8 p.m. Speakers will have 5 minutes to submit comments.
AVENUE Q Opens tonight 7 p.m at Shea’s and runs APRIL 29 - MAY 4, 2008. AVENUE Q is the story of Princeton, a bright-eyed college grad who comes to New York City with big dreams and a tiny bank account. He soon discovers that the only neighborhood in his price range is Avenue Q; still, the neighbors seem nice. I saw the show in NYC and it’s great fun. It’s remarkable how quickly the puppets absorb all your attention and the people carrying them simply seem to disappear. It may not be appropriate for young children because AVENUE Q addresses issues like sex, drinking, racism, and surfing the web for porn.
April 18, 2008
Freeman Supports Arthur’s Stance
According to an April 17 letter, Robert J. Freeman supports the contentions of Buffalo Fiscal Stability Authority (BFSA) secretary George K. Arthur, who has disputed the search process for a new executive director of the entity. (See Control Freaks, and this story for background.)
Freeman is the Executive Director of the Committee on Open Government at the NYS Department of State in Albany. He offers his view on a number of questions raised by Arthur, including whether a committee meeting is subject to the same rules as the authority and whether the public and press must be notified of such meetings.
Freeman notes that an “advisory body, such as a citizens’ advisory committee, would not in my opinion be subject to the Open Meetings Law.” But he continues, “when a committee consists solely of members of a public body, such as the Board of Directors of the Authority, I believe that the Open Meetings Law is applicable.” (more…)
April 1, 2008
Shouting Fireman in a Crowded Theater
Buffalo Fiscal Stability Authority secretary George Arthur used part of Monday’s public meeting to express his ongoing concern that the Authority’s search for a new executive director is not being conducted in an open fashion. (See background story here.)
Clearly, there are members of the board who find Arthur’s concerns to be trivial. Among them, chairman of the board Paul Kolkmeyer and Alair Townsend, who form two thirds of the executive director search committee. The third member of that group, Rochester native Wade Norwood, was not present at Monday’s meeting.
Arthur contends, and Kolkmeyer confirms, that meetings of this three-person panel were often conducted via email and phone call. Townsend explained that her Manhattan residency made open meetings on the subject impractical. The question remains: Were they illegal? (more…)
March 24, 2008
KOLKMEYER RESPONDS TO ARTHUR ACCUSATIONS
This morning’s Buffalo News ran a story about accusations from former common council president George Arthur, who is now secretary of the Buffalo Fiscal Stability Authority (BFSA), commonly known as the control board. The News article describes Arthur’s claims that the search for a new executive director of the board has been conducted in a way that violates the open meetings law. Arthur sent a request for opinion to Robert Freeman at the New York State Department of State Committee on Open Government in Albany, dated March 19.
Here’s more to the story. (more…)
