Like Bill Murray waking up to “I Got You Babe,” the Nampa City Council found itself re-living the Ford Idaho Center (FIC) vote last Monday, courtesy of an alleged open-meeting violation. The Council voted 3-3 (Bills, Jangula, and Reynolds voting yes; Griffin, Haverfield, and Rodriguez voting no) on the conveyance, and, shocker, the Tie-Breaker-in-Chief (Mayor Debbie Kling) voted yes.
Let’s do a quick recap of this whole saga. First, Nampans appear to have been cut out of the negotiation and consideration process for months, then were slapped with the stunning news that the FIC could be conveyed to the College of Western Idaho (CWI) earlier this summer.
Naturally, public outcry followed. The Council and Mayor responded with standard pro-forma “hearings,” allowing citizens to voice opinions that, apparently, would ultimately be ignored. Fast forward to October 6: despite a parade of concerned residents expressing clear disapproval — and enduring condescending remarks from the Mayor and certain Council members — the decision was made to hand over the FIC to CWI.
Four days later, the Mayor and Council received a “courtesy letter” from the Canyon County prosecuting attorney’s office outlining a complaint against them for a potential “open meetings act violation concern and opportunity to cure.” The Mayor and Council were given until October 14 to respond.
Next, the Council and Mayor offered a verbal response, and the investigation into the alleged violations was referred to the Twin Falls Prosecuting Attorney Grant Loebs. In an October 20 meeting, Councilman Randy Haverfield requested clarification on the contents of the courtesy letter. Mayor Kling said there had been no procedural violations, and an attorney present agreed. Councilman Victor Rodriguez then requested a third-party investigation into the issue, but it was denied.
By late October, the Council and Mayor determined to void several actions taken on September 15 and October 6, and to work to cure the alleged violations. An action item was added to the November 3 agenda to vote on a Resolution that would deem the Ford Idaho Center underutilized and to provide notice of the December 1 public hearing.
During the early November meetings, the Council and Mayor examined a letter from the Twin Falls Prosecuting Attorney, which allowed the Council to “self-cure” the issue through a Resolution.
Finally, on December 1, the public hearing took place, and the Council and Mayor again determined to convey the Ford Idaho Center to the College of Western Idaho.
Just three days later, on December 4, CWI’s Board of Trustees unanimously approved the conveyance, bringing the entire saga to an altogether unsurprising close.
It appears to be a done deal, folks.
Perhaps the most ironic thing about this whole situation is the fact that while city leadership cited “financial burden” as a reason to part with the nine-figure public asset, they also approved:
The juxtaposition leaves us staring at our screens with the same feeling Bill Murray had when he smashed his alarm clock for the seventh consecutive morning. The Ford Idaho Center has been given away, and the taxpayers are left holding — well, nothing.
