Comments on: Speak No Evil: Without Debate, Walker Just Barely Makes the Cut

By: Vera

Vera — Sat, 08 Jan 2011 17:12:45 +0000

I agree with you that all are entitled to form opinions on public matters, regardless of whether, or not, they were present at any particular meeting. But I did take issue with depicting Mrs. Kleven as a monkey (I know, more satire) with her mouth covered, when in fact she did speak at the meeting. It wasn’t fair. And speaking of Amy Mayhew, I have always told her that it isn’t necessary to report every single thing every person says. She disagrees because if something is missed … well, I guess she was right.

By: Janet Leslie

Janet Leslie — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 21:38:24 +0000

You are correct, Vera, I was not at the meeting. I relied on information from my colleague Mr. Bladzik, and also on the excellent reporting of Amy Mayhew of The Holly Express. When I was informed that Ms. Kleven had asked a question of Mr. Walker, I edited my column. I apologize to Ms. Kleven, to you, and to anyone who might have read the earlier post and was misled. While this site is not a news site, we do strive for accuracy, and I appreciate your attention to that.
However, I do not intend to limit my commentary solely to events at which I am present, nor would I limit comments from readers to events at which they are present. I think that we are all entitled to form opinions on public matters, and those opinions are what this site exists to communicate.

By: Ryan Bladzik

Ryan Bladzik — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 18:37:03 +0000

As I was at the meeting and managing the live Twitterfeed, Councilwoman Sandra Kleven did ask a question of Mr. Walker. Mrs. Kleven asked about Mr. Walker’s resignation as Walled Lake City Manager in 2004, the circumstances behind it and why he later rescinded that resignation. Mr. Walker responded that his employment agreement with Walled Lake allowed him to exercise the option to return to serving as Police Chief, and that was his intention. He rescinded his resignation upon the request of the Walled Lake City Council.

This question followed Councilman Winglemire’s question of Mr. Walker regarding his previous statements of being a “fit” for Holly and what has changed between his previous withdrawal and now. Mrs. Kleven did not make any follow-up questions or comments to Mr. Walker’s response to her inquiry, and following Mr. Walker’s departure, she did not participate in the discussion leading up and during the motion to select Mr. Walker. President Miller and Ms. Campbell did a majority of the talking during the motion.

Mrs. Kleven also recommended that, when conducting background checks, a standardized set of questions be used for references.

For a full synopsis, search #walkerinterview on Twitter.

By: Vera

Vera — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 18:21:14 +0000

I was not at this meeting, but with all due respect, Janet, I understand you were not there either. It is also my understanding that Sandra Kleven did not remain silent and did speak to some concerns. If so, I believe you owe her an apology because your article implies that you were there and can legitimately say that she said nothing.

By: holly

holly — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 14:31:15 +0000

Janet excellent article. It appears they only like to talk behind the scene.

By: John Graham

John Graham — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 14:02:20 +0000

Ms. Leslie, and rightly so, stopped short of airing out another facet to this discussion. When three council members vote in lock step with one another and with the absence of public debate, the illusion that clandestine negotiations have taken place is created. I’ll parse my words carefully here as there is no evidence that such negotiations have taken place, yet one would be hard pressed not to ponder the question. The intent of the Michigan Open Meetings Act was to force governmental bodies to hold their deliberations within the public purview. Certainly given these circumstances the public would be entitled to make a reasonable assumption that the tenants of the OMA may not have been followed.

By: Davy Crockett

Davy Crockett — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 05:29:18 +0000

I thought the art work was excellent, then I read the article!
Janet…you read my mind exactly! Upon hearing the vote via tweeter, I actually thought …what a way to enter a new job. Now that you have added even more details all I can say is….Mr. Walker, welcome to Holly and I wish you luck!