Filed under: EPA, Garfield County, Silt, drill rigs, environment, gas wells, health, mayor moore, mayor pro-tem, recall, roan plateau, tibbetts, western colorado congress
As I mentioned previously, the Grand Valley Citizens Alliance invited Tod to be part of the Save the Roan Plateau ads. This, the second ad, is a tribute to Representative John Salazar and Representative Mark Udall for their efforts to keep drill rigs off the Roan Plateau. You can thank Rep. Salazar and Rep. Udall and ask Senator Allard to support their efforts by going to Save the Roan Plateau.org Take Action.
While you’re at the Save the Roan Plateau website be sure to check out Gas Wells Cram Garfield County.
Here’s how Tod Tibbetts responded to the article:
“The hard work of citizens and politicians is beginning to show some results. Finally the regulatory agencies are paying more attention to the public’s concerns. The appropriate agencies, such as the EPA, are starting to address public health and environmental issues.
“On the local level we have had a gas well drilling ordinance in place in Silt for several years, and the Board recently revised it to address the ongoing impacts and strengthen it accordingly. Silt’s gas severance tax proceeds funded a road impact study which will soon be released and the Board will be better able to address those impacts accordingly. The people have spoken and slowly but surely they are being heard.”
Recall Update
Currently we are waiting out the protest period, which ends September 28. I will continue next week with lots more recall news and information, or before if there’s any breaking news.
The letter to the editor by Duke Cox in The Paper today, was a particularly vicious pack of lies. If we really wanted to take over the town, it doesn’t make sense that we would work so hard to put the recall in hands of the voters. The decision will be up to the voters, not the recall committee – or by secret board meetings.
Remember! This is your source for up-to-date and accurate news and information about the recall.
Filed under: Silt, democracy, heidi rice, mayor moore, open government, petition, recall, state statutes, town government
Not a misspelling. Just a little wordplay on my part. The Recall Committee members haven’t received their official letters yet, however this article came out in The Paper today:
Clerk verifies Silt mayor recall petition signatures
By Heidi RiceSILT – A petition to recall Mayor Dave Moore was verified with more than enough signatures on Tuesday afternoon, according to Town Clerk Sheila McIntyre.
Members of a committee seeking to recall Moore submitted the petition by Friday’s deadline, with 128 signatures. McIntyre said she verified 124, with four being thrown out. The recall petition needed 111 signatures.
“Now we have a protest period until Sept. 28,” McIntyre said. “If there is no protest, the petition will go before the (Town) Board on Oct. 9.”
There is a 15-day period from the Sept. 14 date when the petition was submitted for a protest to be filed by a registered voter in Silt. If a protest is filed, a hearing date with a neutral party must be held by Oct. 14 – 30 days from the date the petition was filed.
The recall petition was initiated by Mayor Pro Tem Tod Tibbetts, who claims Moore has violated a number of state statutes, town ordinances and code of ethics.
Moore denies the claims. He has said recently that he did not intend to file a protest, and is confident he would win should a recall election be held.
I need to address some inaccuracies. For one, the protest period runs for 10 days after the petition has been verified, not as Heidi Rice wrote: “a 15-day period from the Sept. 14 date”. Sheila McIntyre’s reference to September 28 as the protest deadline is accurate. Also if a protest is filed, a hearing date would be scheduled with Sheila, since she’s the Town Clerk.
Secondly, the recall petition was NOT initiated by Tod Tibbetts. It was initiated by the Recall Committee members which include Tod Tibbetts, Peggy Tibbetts, Bev Thompson, Mary Montover, and Steve Eichhorst.
I’m sick of The Paper portraying this recall as Moore v Tibbetts. But it is their portrayal, not ours. And it is NOT ACCURATE. Everyone on the committee helped with handing out information and/or gathering signatures. Tod could never have accomplished this alone and he did not accomplish this alone. We are the Recall Committee whether The Paper wants to acknowledge that or not. And Tod is not the Pied Piper we all blindly follow. We all have strong feelings about Mayor Moore and our reasons for recalling him. Now that the issues are out in the open and citizens have come forward with their complaints, we feel even stronger in our convictions.
The problem with the media’s inaccurate portrayal – and it’s not just the Post Independent, it’s The Daily Sentinel too – is that it places the onus squarely on Tod’s head. He’s not complaining about it – but I am.
For one thing I think the other committee members deserve more credit for getting more than the required amount of signatures. So I’ll thank them all here.
THANK YOU RECALL COMMITTEE MEMBERS!
Your hard work has succeeded in moving the recall forward.
And for another thing, when the media makes one person, in this case Tod, the focus of the recall effort, they also make him the focus of wackos with way too much time on their hands to spew their hatred and viciousness.
The recall process is a democratic process. It is not one citizen against The Mayor. In fact now you could say it is 129 people who believe strongly that Mayor Moore should be recalled. Throughout the petition process, the committee members have acted responsibly and not attacked or threatened anyone. I suggest the media – as in the Post Independent and The Daily Sentinel – act responsibly as well and publish accurate news stories.
And to the wackos out there –
Back!
Off!
Filed under: drilling, environment, gas wells, pollution, roan plateau, tibbetts, watershed, western colorado congress
While we await news about the recall petition, we pause for this commercial break.
The Grand Valley Citizens Alliance invited Tod to be part of their new video ads from Save the Roan Plateau.org.
Check this out –
You can view both ads at Save the Roan Plateau.org.
Filed under: Silt, democracy, election, heidi rice, mayor moore, mayor pro-tem, open government, ordinance, petition, public trust, recall, rule of law, state statutes, tibbetts, town government, violations
Well. Yeah. That would involve actually studying 8 pages of State Statutes containing lots of the really tiny state-statutes-font reserved for fine print. And we all know what Mayor Moore thinks about those pesky rules and laws.
The thing is, Tod and I did study those 8 pages of State Statutes regarding recall and petitions. We followed them to the letter. So there’s nothing to protest anyway.
The Recall made the front page in The Paper. Here’s the latest from the entertainment stack:
Silt mayor: bring on the recall
Moore isn’t trying to block petition to start the recall process against him
By Heidi RiceSILT – Mayor Dave Moore isn’t worried about the recall petition filed against him and submitted to Silt Town Hall on Friday morning, even though it contained more than the required number of signatures.
A total of 111 valid signatures by registered voters are needed to proceed with the recall process to remove Moore from office. Friday was the deadline to turn in the petition, which contained 128 signatures. The petition was taken out about two months ago, spearheaded by Mayor Pro Tem Tod Tibbetts and a recall committee.
“I’m not surprised that they turned in the petition,” Moore said when he heard the news. “I’m only surprised that they didn’t file it sooner.”
The recall petition is based on accusations that Moore, who was elected as mayor in April 2006, has violated a number of state statutes, town ordinances and code of ethics, which he denies.
“I think their reasonings for the recall are baseless and unfounded,” Moore said. “I really don’t know what I’m being recalled for. At the worst, it’s procedural.”
But Tibbetts maintains that Moore has broken the rules.
“We’re the ones who make the rules and we should follow the rules,” Tibbetts has said. “Our primary responsibility is to follow the rules that are on the books.”
Tibbetts alleges that Moore has violated a number of town ordinances and code of ethics, including how he conducts a town board meeting and letting citizens speak longer than the allotted time, inappropriate dealings with town staff, conduct regarding opposition to the Stillwater Ranch Metropolitan District and failure to obtain a fence permit or street closure permit with respect to his Centre Town Homes development in Silt.
“He lives by his own set of rules and does what he feels is best without regard for the town,” Tibbetts wrote in a guest column for the Post Independent …
Filed under: Silt, Sunshine Law, investigation, mayor moore, mayor pro-tem, ordinance, permit, petition, public trust, recall, rule of law, satire, tibbetts, town government, town ordinances, trustee, violations
I saw a friend of mine at the park on Sunday. She said the articles about the recall in the papers are “pure entertainment”. What a great line! So I stole it from her. Thanks KS.
Here’s the latest from the entertainment stack:
Silt recall leaders say proof in records
By Mike McKibbinSILT — A citizens group that wants to recall Silt Mayor Dave Moore says it has documented proof to back up its claims against the mayor, but Moore says the record doesn’t tell the entire story, and he is being harassed in a “witch hunt.”
Say what? A witch hunt? Metaphorically speaking (and don’t I just love Wikipedia?) a witch hunt refers “to the act of seeking and persecuting any perceived enemy, particularly when the search is conducted using extreme measures and with little regard to actual guilt or innocence”.
As I’ve mentioned oh, once or twice before, we are investigating issues involving Mayor Moore that citizens have reported to us. And not just one or two people – but a whole bunch of people from all walks of life, some who live in Silt, some who don’t. The recall effort has opened the flood gate on complaints about the Mayor. People expect us to do something about his conduct. So that’s what we’re doing.
And if, as he said, “the record doesn’t tell the entire story”, then we can assume he at least took the opportunity to tell McKibbon the entire story for this article. Let’s read on …
Moore, who was elected mayor last year, was targeted by a group led by Mayor Pro Tem Tod Tibbetts for a series of actions at board meetings, as a construction company owner, and with town employees.
Tibbetts filed Colorado Open Records Act requests to obtain 400 pages of e-mails sent by Moore and other information to back up the group’s statements.
The group claims Moore hasn’t upheld his oath of office to enforce and follow town ordinances, citing a privacy fence he built next to a town alley without a permit. Moore said while such a permit is required, none is available at Town Hall, and planners told him none had ever been issued.
Wait a minute. Does that last sentence make any sense to you? Me either. Is he saying that because a planner – and what’s a planner? – didn’t walk up and hand him a fence permit he didn’t need one? I’m confused.
“If I’m the only one required to get a permit, that’s harassment,” Moore said. “I’ve been targeted as the lone ranger out there that doesn’t get permits, and it’s interesting this comes up during this recall when I’ve never been asked to get one in my 23 years in business.”
Oh, now I get it, the town is supposed to ask people to get fence permits. Fence permits are by invitation only. Gosh, that’s not how it worked when Ema and Tim Kwiatkowski built their fence. Ema had to go down to the town hall and meet with Janet Aluise, the Community Development Director. She provided Janet with a drawing of their proposed fence. It was approved and Ema paid a fee and received a fence permit.
Moore said he wants to let the town board decide the status of the fence.
New rule! Build your fence then go to the town board and have them decide if it’s a fence or not. So all you folks who paid for fence permits should make a copy of this article and take it to the next board meeting and ask for a refund on your fence permit.
And there’s quite a few of you out there. We put in a CORA request for fence permits issued since 2004. Here’s the recent stats on fence permits issued in the Town of Silt:
2004 – 18
2005 – 27
2006 – 15
2007 – 17
A street in Moore’s Center Town Homes project was recently closed without a permit, Tibbetts said.
Moore said a dirt pile covered part of a street for a time, but it was never completely blocked.
What do you call this?
I call it evidence.
“We rely on the traffic-control companies that are more familiar with the laws and lean on them to provide proper signage,” he said.
So I think he’s saying that because he rented the signs from the traffic-control company it’s their responsibility to know whether or not he needed to get permission to close off the street.
He can’t be serious.
Again, here’s what Silt Municipal Code says about that:
12.08.010 Permission required–Restoration by town.
A. No person shall: (1) Make any excavation, drain or ditch in, or (2) lay, construct or place any culvert, pipe, rock, gravel, fill dirt, or other thing or item in, or (3) injure, encroach upon, obstruct, tear up, or affect in any other manner, any pavement, sidewalk, ditch, drainage way, street, alley, or other public way or any easement or right-of-way dedicated to the use of the public or designated for public use, without first, in each and every instance, having obtained written permission from the town and having complied with all other applicable ordinances of the town pertaining thereto.
And here’s the part about what should be done once the dirt has been dumped in the street:
B. Upon the town’s determination that a person is violating, or attempting to violate, the provisions of subsection A of this section, the town has the right to remove or cause to be removed forthwith from, and to restore or cause to be restored to its prior condition, any pavement, sidewalk, ditch, drainage way, street, alley or other public way or any easement or right-of-way dedicated to the use of the public or designated for public use, any culvert, pipe, rock, gravel, fill dirt, or other thing or item laid, constructed or placed in, or obstructing, encroaching upon, or affecting in any manner, any of such areas. Prior to such removal and restoration, the town shall attempt to notify by the most expedient means possible, the person causing or responsible for such condition existing in contravention of this section, in order that such person may expeditiously and without delay carry out such removal and restoration. Failure to actually notify such person shall not prevent the town from effecting such removal and restoration. The person or persons so causing or responsible for such condition existing in contravention of this section shall pay upon demand of the town all costs incurred by the town, including legal expenses and attorney’ s fees, in effecting such removal and restoration and in enforcing the provisions hereof. (Ord. 5, Series of 1983 § 1)
But Dave hasn’t cleaned up the mess and the town hasn’t cleaned up the mess. I was just over there yesterday and the street still looks like this:
It’s not always easy to follow Dave’s logic but I think what he’s saying is that if you don’t know that you need to get a permit, then you don’t really need one. It’s a voluntary thing. If you do, you do. If you don’t, well no big deal. But don’t you dare mention that someone did not get a permit, because then that’s harassment.
You know what? Screw permits. I think permits are stupid anyway. Let’s just do away with permits altogether. Just go do what you want. It’s your property.
Want to put up an electric fence between you and that neighbor with the 6 kids? Go right ahead. Zap those kids. That’ll teach em to stay out of your yard.
Or maybe you need to do some landscaping. Order up a truckload of rocks and dirt and have the driver dump it in the street, not your yard for crap’s sake. Then just go rent a couple Road Closed signs from A-1, because if they rent you the signs then you don’t need a permit.
Hey! Think of the fun we could have this winter. For the price of sign rental we can block the street, flood it, and play hockey. Woo-hoo!
But wait – Dave’s not finished telling the entire story yet. There’s even more entertaining nonsense …
Tibbetts said Moore intervened in an employee matter, but town ordinances say the town administrator is responsible for managing all employees not directly hired by the town board.
Moore said the board directed him to mediate the dispute, while meeting minutes show the board directed the town administrator to act. Moore said everything he did was board-authorized but not reflected in the minutes, and members were aware of his actions.
That’s not true. The board can’t authorize something that’s not in the minutes. That’s why they have minutes. For the public record. Otherwise what would be the purpose of the minutes? So they can relive old times?
Or maybe I should put it this way, if the other board members did in fact authorize Moore to mediate the dispute between the town and the treasurer (and Tod Tibbetts certainly did not) and it’s not in the minutes, then is he saying the other board members held some kind of secret meeting behind Tibbetts’ back and authorized Moore to mediate the dispute? That’s a no-no. Violation of the Colorado Open Meetings Law (Sunshine Law).
Poor Dave. He’s damned if he did and damned if he didn’t on that one I’m afraid.
“By interjecting himself into this, he’s put the town at risk for a potential lawsuit” from the ex-employee, Tibbetts said. “At some point, the town won’t be able to compensate for his rogue actions.”
Tibbetts said the recall group has gathered more than the 111 required signatures of registered Silt voters to put the issue on a special-election ballot. The deadline is Friday.
Moore calls the recall effort “a witch hunt” to allow Tibbetts to replace him as mayor.
“This is a direct, conscious effort to defame me,” Moore said. “It’s character assassination.”
Doh! Get me Wikipedia!
Character assassination is an intentional attempt to influence the portrayal or reputation of a particular person, whether living or a historical personage, in such a way as to cause others to develop an extremely negative, unethical or unappealing perception of him or her. By its nature, it involves deliberate exaggeration or manipulation of facts to present an untrue picture of the targeted person …
Blah, blah, blah. All of our allegations are backed up with evidence. There are not two sets of facts. And there aren’t supposed to be two sets of rules. So who’s zoomin who?
Tibbetts said he and other recall group members did not pursue Moore’s removal because Tibbetts wants to be mayor. However, Tibbetts said, if the recall group does not feel any other candidate is up to snuff, he will run for the office.
“I’ve become a punching bag for them, and I haven’t reacted,” Moore said. “But my time at bat is coming. I want to win this recall in a big way.”
I don’t know about you, but I’m sure glad Dave told us the entire story. We wouldn’t want to rely on the public record for the facts when we could be living a life free of rules and permits on Planet Dave.
Or does this new found freedom only apply to Dave? And how will we ever know for sure? Unless someone else breaks the rules like Dave does, then see what happens.
Okay. You go first.
Be sure to let the rest of us know how that works out for ya.
Filed under: Silt, bobby hays, investigation, mayor moore, meredith robinson, petition, recall, town government, trustee, violations
I’m still pretty busy with further investigations of Mayor Moore’s conduct in office. So this blog may be somewhat of a wash for my local readers. This is meant for those of you following the action from afar.
And since I’m the one who mentioned “investigations”, I need to take a moment to clear the air. The work I’m currently doing on this blog is the result of investigative reporting. If you don’t want to call me a journalist, then don’t. I don’t care. The information I’m posting here is fact, based on CORA requests and interviews with actual living breathing people. Most of the time the people we interview don’t want their names published. Just because I don’t publish their names does not mean the information is not truthful or uncorroborated. I always have more than one source for the information I publish.
We put a lot of time into each investigation, that’s why it takes awhile to come out with new information. I make certain that the information I’m posting is factual and substantiated. Our committee checks out every single piece of information that is given to us. If you reported something to us, we are investigating it. There are no lies or rumors here. Just facts.
You may at times find my style brazen, offensive, or even disrespectful. If you’re intimidated by the facts, then deal with it. But DO NOT call me – or the other committee members – liars. We don’t make this stuff up.
Now I resume my regularly scheduled blog …
Silt was all over the news last week. Here’s the recap –
Silt recall controversy now roils on Internet
By Mike McKibbinSILT — The possible recall of Silt Mayor Dave Moore is being discussed in more than cafes and stores in the small town along Interstate 70.
An Internet blog, authored by the wife of Silt Mayor Pro-Tem Tod Tibbetts, the recall committee chairman, focuses on the claims and allegations of Moore’s actions that led to the effort to recall him …
This a great article because it’s about me and my blog. Yay! Even though Dave whines about my blog and insists for the umpteenth time that all these violations are “procedural mistakes”. This article got us a whole bunch more signatures. Thanks Dave!
And, in the I Can’t Possibly Make This Stuff Up Dept:
Silt trustee appears in court
Bobby Hays faces felony accusation of stalking
By Pete FowlerThe Silt Town Trustee accused of stalking a woman said the accusations against him are “bogus.”
“I think they’re bogus, but I don’t want to make any more comments,” said Bobby Hays following a hearing for formal filing of charges Wednesday.
The 9th Judicial District Attorney’s Office filed a charge of stalking against Hays. It’s a class five felony that could carry a maximum of three years in prison and up to a $100,000 fine, according to Magistrate Lain Leoniak. She said if extreme circumstances are present, the maximum prison sentence could be extended to eight years.
Hays, 49, said in court that he would like to apply for a public defender …
Oh dear. According to the affidavit the woman said “that Hays had said God told him they were married”. Something tells me God is not speaking to Bobby Hays. But for now it’s just a rumor. I’m still waiting for God to get back to me on that. And I should probably get an angel or two to back him up.
Meet the Silt Trustees
Serving the Public — SiltSpotlight on a Silt Trustee: Meredith Robinson
Serving the Public — Silt
I’ll refrain from commenting on either of the trustee articles, except to say it’s obvious The Paper’s campaign on behalf of Dave Moore is still going strong.
Town of Silt faces potential lawsuit from terminated worker
By Heidi RiceSILT – A former town treasurer who was fired from the Town of Silt in late May has served the town with the first paperwork that could possibly lead to a lawsuit over what she claims was her wrongful termination.
Kyra Markiecki, who was employed with the town for seven years, was terminated by the town board at a meeting on May 29.
The allegations on which her firing was based include that she failed to obtain credentials required to perform her duties; did not follow directives and understand her job; chronic absenteeism; disruptive behavior in the work place; and violated the complaint procedures and due process, according to the minutes of the meeting.
The board met in executive session and voted 5-1, with Mayor Dave Moore dissenting, to terminate Markiecki’s employment …
Someone said to me in defense of Mayor Moore: “Well whatever he did, it must not be that bad, cuz the town hasn’t been sued.”
To which I say – YET!
