Article in Todays Times Argus: Article published Oct 30, 2013 Montpelier planning board accused of conflicts By Eric Blaisdell Staff Writer MONTPELIER — A high-profile issue raised by the city planning director in an internal back-and-forth with City Manager William Fraser made public last week concerns what Gwendolyn Hallsmith perceives as conflicts of interest among members of the Planning Commission, a City Council-appointed board. Last week, Hallsmith was publicly criticized by members of the commission during a City Council meeting. They accused Hallsmithof holding up their work by forcing them to strictly adhere to the Master Plan, which the City Council adopted in 2010 as a growth plan for Montpelier. In turn last week, the council “freed” the commission to go about its work and to see the Master Plan more like “a living document”— not a mandate. Hallsmith, who has served as the city’s top planner for seven years, maintains commission members are looking out more for their own interests, and points to several conflicts of interest as the real reasons for any lack of progress by the commission. Hallsmith said this week that over the past year she has raised the concerns several times, looking for guidance from Fraser and the City Council, but has received none. Internal memos and emails obtained by The Times Argus recently seem to reveal a certain dysfunction at City Hall, especially among staff and city boards, including the City Council and the Planning Commission.Certain documents point to miscommunications, accusations, exaggerations, competing management styles, and even a few pointed claims and some name-calling. The planning director went public with her concerns earlier this month. But the problems are longstanding, she said. The planning commission issues started last year, Hallsmith said, whencommissioner Alan Goldman, a known developer around the Capital City,insisted the commission change the zoning map in his favor. Last fall, Hallsmith had presented the council with a new zoning mapthat was the result of a boundary study that the city commissioned witha planning grant from the state, plus many neighborhood meetings and adesign competition over the summer. The map proposes changing the zoningfor the Crestview neighborhood on Terrace Street, formerly the JoslynFarm, from suburban to rural. On Oct. 22, 2012, Goldman, who owns the512-acre parcel of land, sat in the audience as a member of the publicand argued against changing the map. Hallsmith said Crestview came up several times in Planning Commissionmeetings since, and Goldman has not been sitting in the audience, butrather in his planning commissioner’s chair. Open government laws in Vermont require public officials with conflictsof interest to recuse themselves from discussions that might benefitthem. They certainly are not supposed to vote on issues where there is aconflict of interest. “Ever since then, there is this back and forth with (Goldman’s)interests on the Crestview neighborhood and (Chairman Kim Cheney’s)interests in reducing the growth center so it doesn’t include a largepiece of property directly adjacent to his neighborhood,” Hallsmithsaid. “Those two interests, to me, have appeared to be driving thedecision-making, or lackthereof, of the Planning Commission.” Goldman did not return a request for comment on Tuesday. Cheney owns property adjacent to 250 Main St. — an undeveloped piece ofland. Hallsmith contends Cheney is holding up the re-zoning processbecause he does not want the undeveloped piece of property next to hisland inside the growth center, or an area that includes commercial andresidential development in the city. Cheney said Tuesday her claim was untrue. He said his issue with thegrowth center is that it is complicated, and he doesn’t know what itmeans and how it applies, so he argues he can’t write a good ordinancefor it. He also maintains there are people at the state level who feelthe growth center in Montpelier is too large and he was told the statelaw regarding growth centers is going to be re-examined in the 2014legislative session. “Until it settles down, I’m not going to pay too much attention to (thegrowth center),” Cheney said. Another potential conflict of interest that Hallsmith raised involvedvice chairman Jon Anderson. At the commission’s April 22 meeting,Anderson proposed banning businesses such as veterinarians, outdoorstorage, and motor vehicle repair shops from the downtown. Anderson alsodiscussed the Gulf gas station near the Capitol, saying he wasn’t sureit fit in that location. Anderson is a lawyer who represents Cumberland Farms, R.L. Vallee Inc., whichowns the Maplefields stores, and the owner of the Gulf gas station inquestion. By Anderson making his proposal, Hallsmith contends in a memo to FraserOct. 28 that was obtained by The Times Argus, Anderson’s “clients wouldhave benefited financially if his past proposal to ban gas stations fromthe downtown district had been adopted.” Anderson called the scenario far-fetched and said his proposal wouldhave actually gone against what his clients would have wanted. He saidhis clients never asked him to take that position about the gas stationban, and he was suggesting it because he legitimatley thought it waswhat was best for the city. As for the appearance that a lawyer who represents gas stations tried tokeep out his clients’ competition from downtown, Anderson said, “Peopleare welcome to believe what they want to believe.” The city has an ethics policy that was reaffirmed in 2004 which lays outwhen and how public officers must recuse themselves from a discussionabout which they have a conflict of interest. The city policy defines conflict of interest as “a personal or pecuniaryinterest of a public officer or his or her relative, member of thehousehold, business associate, employer or employee, in the outcome of acause, proceeding, application or any other matter pending before thepublic body in which he or she holds office or is employed.” Cheney maintains the policy does not apply to the Planning Commissionbecause they don’t take any action, instead only making recommendations tothe City Council. Having said that, Cheney added that commissions shouldbe sensitive to public opinion and public confidence in what thecommission does. But the city manager said the ethics policy does actually apply to allboards and commissions in the city. Fraser said there haven’t really been any conflict of interest issues onthe commission, although he said he has not looked into it in hugedetail and admitted the commission may need “more clarification” on whento recuse themselves and how the policy applies to them. Fraser said if there was a conflict of interest with someone on a boardor commission, then they should recuse themselves from voting andprobably from deliberating. “The more recused you make yourself, the better, depending on theconflict,” Fraser said. As for conflicts of interest on the commission, Cheney said he doesn’tsee any. He admits there will be times when he needs to recuse himselffrom voting on issues directly involving 250 Main St., but that’s as faras he felt he needed to go. He said he would still continue to deliberate about 250 Main St. withthe commission, as he wanted to make sure his voice was heard. “Everyoneon the commission is aware of what possible interest I might have,” hesaid. eric.blaisdell@timesargus
Posted on: Wed, 30 Oct 2013 11:04:56 +0000
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