A Rhinelander City Council member says he left a meeting Monday night because he was denied having consideration of bills regarding the remodeling of the City Administrator's office to be placed in the discussion portion of the agenda.
Council President George Kirby Monday said he didn't want to be seated that night because he didn't get the nearly $13,000 in expenditures item up for discussion, but rather inside the consent agenda. The consent agenda is approved in one mass vote rather than voting individually on each item.
By past practice, an alderperson can ask to have an item removed from the consent agenda for individual consideration.
Kirby says that didn't happen..
"I wanted them(the bills) to be put through separately so they could be considered as a line item on Monday's city council meeting. The administrator told me that no, he was going to put them through under the consent agenda. I said, no, I wanted them as a line item because I wanted the council to know what these expenses were..."
Kirby says after the request he made to bring out the item to an individual discussion he noticed it was not taken out of the consent agenda. He says Mayor Chris Frederickson approved the agenda as it was presented..
"...The mayor, by approving that agenda, is totally wrong in what he had done by letting that agenda being posted that way. That is why I did not sit in my appointed chair. That is why I sat in the audience that night. I felt that I was morally right by sitting where I did sit. If I had sit in my chair I would have been ethically wrong in doing that...."
An open records request confirmed the office furniture was paid in December.
Kirby says Guild told him the items had been budgeted and Guild felt he could run the expenses through that way.
Kirby told him he thought that was wrong.
Kirby says in the many years he's been on the city council, it was the first time he can recall the bills and items being put before the city council in that manner.
We contacted Guild via email and phone to get his response but had not heard back in time for this story. Rhinelander city offices were closed Wednesday due to the extreme cold.
We will update the story when we hear back.
