Keizertimes: Latest community news

Good morning.

Something apparently bad happened behind closed doors of a Keizer City Council meeting last month.

City councilors and city officials don’t think it’s your business.

Even though Councilor Lore Christopher apparently left the meeting, upset.

Even though Councilor Kyle Juran publicly accused Mayor Cathy Clark and Councilor Dan Kohler of improper conduct.

And even though the city is spending up to $10,000 for an investigation that at the most would result in a public censure.

The meeting at issue happened June 1. Councilors, as the law law allows, met in executive session to evaluate City Manager Adam Brown.

This disrupts city business ­– and the effectiveness of the city council. This is costing taxpayers in a year when councilors considered the budget so tight that they boosted city fees paid by local homeowners and businesses to cover costs.

An outside investigator was brought in to question at least 10 people about that meeting. The issue is a possible violation of city council rules. No one is suggesting anyone committed a crime.

Christopher and Juran declined to explain why they filed the complaint. That document is as vague as they come for something publicly alleging misconduct. Councilor Shaney Starr, who is chairing a special Internal Oversight Committee, likewise deflected questions, insisting that what happens in executive session simply has to stay secret.

Reporter Krista Kroiss has been working to get at the truth. Keizertimes has pressed on several fronts to get the facts.

I wrote to the entire council urging that the recording of that executive session be made public. Keizer residents could hear for themselves what happened and judge subsequent actions.

If you want to add your voice for transparency ahead of the July 13 council meeting, you can appear or send a written statement to City Recorder Melissa Bisset at [email protected].

Keizertimes also sought the full contract that defines the work of the outside investigators. Government contracts typically are public.

However, the city is keeping secret a crucial piece of that contract.

To contest that, Keizertimes has filed a public records petition with Marion County District Attorney Paige Clarkson.

And Keizertimes asked Christopher, Juran and Starr for records they had about this whole mess. We asked for emails, both on city accounts and in their personal emails, as is our right under the law. We asked for text messages. The requests were identical.

All three deflected again, this time saying we had to go through City Hall to get those records. I am an expert on public records law after 50 years using it. They are wrong. In my view, they each owe the community transparency.

The community has several challenges at the moment. Keizer residents on several forums are upset with the secrecy about this meeting. Some are upset that this appears to be a political witch hunt disguised as serious city business.

Our job at Keizertimes is to hold public officials accountable. In this instance, count on us to not give up no matter how many roadblocks, no matter how much silence. This is your city government. You are owed the facts.

Meantime, catch up on other Keizer news as well from our team.

–Les Zaitz, editor

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