News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sisters Mayor Steve Wilson lambasted City Council President Gordon Petrie Thursday, June 9, for not disclosing to the council his involvement in two local political action committees.
Petrie served as treasurer for the Committee to Save Sisters, which opposed the sewer bond, and currently is treasurer of Citizens for Fair Development Charges, a group seeking to charge maximum systems development charges.
Petrie said he is well within his rights as a citizen.
"I took care of the paperwork," he said. "I did no campaigning."
Wilson said he was particularly outraged because Petrie had accused the mayor of bias during the sewer election.
"At the same time he was accusing me of bias, he was working in secret with a PAC," Wilson said.
In fact, Petrie was registered as treasurer in the PAC's filings, and City Administrator Barbara Warren acknowledged that she knew about it.
But Petrie never told the other council members or declared a potential conflict of interest.
City Attorney Steve Bryant said Petrie had not committed an ethics violation.
However, Bryant said, "My recommendation to the council has always been that if you're involved in some kind of activity, you should get it up on the table and let the council and the public know about it."
Councilor Tim Clasen echoed Bryant's view.
"I didn't know about it, so I guess I'm shocked," Clasen said. "And I think, Gordon, that's something that you should put on the table."
The Thursday night contretemps was not the first time the gloves have come off in a long-standing skirmish between Petrie and Wilson.
The mayor and council president have traded accusations of bias on issues ranging from the development of the Barclay Ranch to the sewer.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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