New Albany, Ind., Storm Water Board Resigns

All three members of the New Albany, Ind., Storm Water Board resigned yesterday at the end of its regular monthly meeting. Some city council members had been criticizing the board members for entering into a $507,000 no-bid contract.

"The board and the council have vastly different philosophies on how we should operate," said Tim Deatrick, appointed by Mayor James Garner to the head of the storm water board after the city council established it last year. "Bottom line, the council created the board, and if the council doesn't agree with the board, we can acquiesce or resign. We decided to resign."

The other two New Albany Storm Water Board members to resign were Sam Asberry and Al Goodman.

According to city councilman Dan Coffey, the resigations mean "absolutely nothing." "It means we're not going to be spending hundreds of thousands of dollars without any oversight," he said. Coffey had been critical of the board for awarding the no-bid contract.

Mayor Garner, however, said in a postmeeting interview that the council criticism came as a "slap in the face" to the three volunteer board members who were "trying to do what's in the best interest of the people." Garner said he will take over Deatrick's position as head of the board. "As of right now I am the chair, and I will take over oversight of the utility," he said.

The council will meet Thursday to begin planning the appointment of two additional members. One of the members must be an engineer.

Deatrick said the major factor in the unanimous decision to resign was the city council's 6-2 vote last week to override a veto by Garner. The mayor had tried to block a council resolution that authorized filing a lawsuit to determine whether two no-bid contracts, including the one involving the storm water board, were valid. Environmental Management Corp., which has run New Albany's sewer system since 2001, won both contracts without competitive bidding last month.

In his letter of resignation, Deatrick wrote that the council and board have "different philosophies regarding how this utility should operate," but that "we share the goal of serving the citizens of New Albany and doing what we think is best for our community." Goodman, the board's engineer, said the council did not respect the board members' professional opinions, and Asberry could not be reached for comment by The Courier-Journal, though Deatrick said he submitted his resignation via e-mail.

Councilman Jeff Gahan, who also questioned awarding the contracts, said "To a certain extent, they [the storm water board members] may be the victims in this" and that bidding "is the least you can do when you're handling public funds."

Council president Larry Kochert, who also sits on the sewer board, said the storm water resignations are "a step back" for New Albany, that both contracts were awarded properly and that no sewer board resignations will occur.

Source: The Courier-Journal