Letter to the Editor Regarding Windham Hall Committee
Editor,
At their July 5th meeting the Windham Township Community Hall Committee did it again! For the fourth month in a row - April, May, June and July - visitors were not allowed an opportunity for public comment. The June and July meetings were swiftly adjourned and then followed by the announcement of an Executive Session to immediately follow with no topics disclosed. Visitors were asked to leave.
The Committee was established in April 2004 and has By-Laws amended in February 2006 which were approved and adopted by the Windham Township Supervisors. The Committee’s stated duty is to assist in the administration and operation of the Community Hall and provide regular reports to residents and the Supervisors at their monthly meetings.
In direct conflict with their own By-Laws, in the months April through July of this year, the Committee under the current leadership of Chairman Bob Freed has violated its own By-Laws by:
|
u Failure to allow visitors’ comments at each of the four most recent meetings. In May a visitor was not only silenced, but was then rudely berated in a false and unjustified verbal tirade by Freed; |
|
u Failure to announce the reason for holding an executive session at the open meeting occurring immediately prior to or subsequent to an executive session; |
|
u Failure to recognize that there are only six circumstances where an agency may hold an executive session, the Committee does not meet any of the requirements which would legitimize their meeting in a closed session; |
|
u Failure to recognize that an executive session shall not be used as a subterfuge to defeat the purpose of an open meeting under the terms of its definition in the Sunshine Act; |
|
u Failure to appoint a Financial Secretary who would give a monthly report to enable the Committee, Supervisors, and residents the opportunity to gauge how well the Committee is meeting its responsibilities; |
When in attendance, Supervisor Chairman Larry Brown and other Committee members have disappointingly remained silent. Do they not realize that four of these failures are not only unacceptable but are also against the law?
A previous Hall Committee was abolished about ten years ago only a few months after it was started. Under previous leadership this present Committee has been affirmed for its service to the Community.
Because I care, this writer will continue to attend Windham Township Community Hall Committee meetings and expect positive changes. That’s what “Open Government” is all about.
Original Signed
Lois Yeagle, Windham Township Resident
Editor's Note: If you have questions regarding the law for meetings, here is Pennsylvania Open Meetings and Open Records Act (.pdf format) link.