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…)
