Is the Carrboro Town Council really listening to the community?

At last night’s Carrboro Town Council meeting, reappointment to the OWASA Board of Directors for one of the two Carrboro representatives was on the consent agenda. During public comment on items not on the agenda, one speaker objected to the reappointment. Prior to the meeting, council members had received multiple emails opposed to the reappointment.

The reappointment decision is not the source of my concern. My concern lies with the Council dialog that followed. In previous iterations of the Town Council, such community concern would have been given consideration, even if the final vote still resulted in reappointment.

But when veteran Council Member Randee Haven-O'Donnell asked for the reappointment item to be pulled from the consent agenda and rescheduled to the June 18 meeting, she met with the same iron wall of opposition she encounters meeting after meeting. Council Member Danny Nowell, speaking for the rest of his coalition (as he always does), objected with a look of outrage claiming that Haven-O’Donnell should have notified the Council that she wanted to pull the item prior to the meeting (before public comment was received). But that notice is not a parliamentary requirement, and it discounts the purpose of public comment. He next objected by claiming that Haven-O’Donnell was well aware that such a delay in reappointment might negate the representative’s eligibility to serve as chair of the OWASA Board of Directors.

As the interactions heated up between the two council members, Mayor Foushee asked the new Town Manager if the item could be moved to the June 18 meeting. With the Manager’s affirmative response, parliamentary procedure still required someone to second the request to pull the item from the consent agenda. None was forthcoming. Instead, Mr. Nowell moved the reappointment and his yes-man Posada seconded it. The final vote, as it so often is, was 5-1 (with Mayor Foushee voting against her own decisiion to delay the decision) to affirm the reappointment. 

Long-time members of the Carrboro community know Ms. Haven-O'Donnell values fairness and diversity above all else. She has led this community through numerous public conflicts to find acceptable resolutions, making residents feel as if their concerns and opinions matter to those sitting on the dais. That respect for diverse opinions has made Carrboro the open, respectful community that it is. To see her treated with the disrespect she receives on any item that is not pre-approved by "the Slate," as they called themselves during the last election, is more than a little discouraging. Kudos to Randee for continuing her efforts to fully represent ALL the people of Carrboro.