Private meetings address growing tensions at City Hall
'No holds barred' meetings said to clear the air
City leaders held two private meetings in the past five days to address disputes between Councilor Dan Skolnik and a number of city employees.
Mayor Jill Duson confirmed she called the sessions on Friday and Monday to "clear the air" amid disagreements over the roles and responsibilities of unelected city staffers. Likewise, she said the meetings were aimed at maintaining decorum and civility between officials.
"I called these meetings to break the building story that there is a big problem," Duson said this week. "I think there isn't. I think there were some testy interactions and folks just needed to get in a room and talk to each other."
Tensions between Skolnik and Gray bubbled over last week when Skolnik publicly rebuked the city manager for skipping a meeting despite apparently saying he would attend.
"This is the second time he has said in no uncertain terms that he would 'be here at the meeting' and then was not," Skolnik told the packed City Council Chambers on Sept. 8. "The Chair finds this highly discouraging, unprofessional, and frankly, unacceptable."
A city spokesperson responded that Gray intended to be at the meeting but that a conflict arose at the last minute. The spokesperson didn't say what the conflict was.
Meanwhile, rumors have circulated in recent weeks about tart email exchanges between Skolnik and Chief James Craig. Neither would comment on the nature of those exchanges Wednesday. Other city employees have also complained of being confronted by Skolnik of late.
Friday's meeting, held in Gray's City Hall office, included Duson, Skolnik, Gray and City Attorney Gary Wood. Monday's meeting, also in Gray's office, included Duson, Skolnik, Gray and Craig.
The weekly newspaper West End News broke the story of Friday's meeting in its Tuesday edition.
On Wednesday, Skolnik admitted at Friday's "no holds barred" meeting that some of his communications with city employees have been too "brusque." But, he said that wasn't why the meetings were called in the first place.
"The Friday meeting was called because the city manager has messed up on a number of fronts," he said Wednesday, declining to elaborate.
Skolnik said Monday's meeting with Duson, Gray and Craig went over much of the same ground as Friday's and focused on "the substantive issue of lines of communication."
"Both Chief Craig and I cleared the air with regard to unfortunate communications from both of us and it was a very good meeting in that was the result," Skolnik said.
Craig initially returned an email Wednesday about the meeting but did not respond to additional questions in a follow-up message.
One root cause of the tension centers around the city's handling of Skolnik's request for information about police software upgrades. For weeks, Skolnik says, he sought information on costs and others matters associated with upgrading the software to include more precise information on the location of the crime or disturbance.
That information has become an issue as the city reviews alcohol sales licenses. Both frequency and types of police calls are among the factors considered in renewals, and Skolnik has expressed concerns that more details are needed in such reporting.
Sources say Skolnik was unhappy at the lack of response from city staffers on the matter, and in one instance a city employee apparently said "no" when asked to provide information to the councilor.
"The meeting was very productive and provided an opportunity for staff and councilors to discuss roles and responsibilities openly and address issues as needed," Gray said in a statement Wednesday. "I can only speak for myself, but I was pleased and believe the meeting will lead to better relationships with all involved."
At both meetings, Mayor Duson was effectively forced to moderate the conflicts which in some cases she found out about only moments before sitting down.
"I told staff I thought they needed to be responsive to requests from councilors and that it's never appropriate for a staff member to respond to a request for information by saying no," the Mayor said Tuesday. "But I also stood up for councilors treating staff with respect. It's never appropriate for a councilor to be yelling, or use foul language or treating a staff member with disrespect."
Duson says she asked everyone to sit down face-to-face to prevent the tensions from worsening. But she also made clear the longstanding process by which councilors request information from staff must be maintained.
"It's an important role for even the weakest of mayors to exhibit some signs of strength around preserving council process," she said.
