If you arrived for the Tyrone Borough Council meeting after 7 p.m. last night, you would have missed the majority of the 18-minute meeting conducted at the borough building at 1100 Logan Avenue.
The meeting was advertised as scheduled to start at 7 p.m., according to a public legal notice appearing in The Tyrone Daily Herald last month.
The agenda for the meeting faxed to this reporter listed the start as 7 p.m. The agenda posted on the window of the door at the borough building and on agendas distributed at the meeting also listed 7 p.m.
Instead, the meeting began shortly after 6:45 p.m. after recently elected councilman Bill Fink was sworn in at that time as were those council members who were re-elected in November. All members of council and other borough employees were present along with about two dozen people seated in the gallery.
The borough’s charter lists the following information regarding terms of council members under section 41.3-305.
The terms of all members of Council shall be four (4) years, commencing at 8:00 P.M. on the first Monday of January following the year in which they are elected, except that a member of Council appointed to fill a vacancy shall serve only for the balance of the unexpired term.
New Borough Manager Nathan George was introduced then Council proceeded with their reorganization meeting after the roll call which came at 6:50 p.m.
The borough’s charter lists the following regarding the time of reorganization:
Under section 41.3-309. Organization of Council.
The Council shall organize at 8:00 P.M. on the first Monday of January of each even numbered year. If the first Monday is a legal holiday, the meeting and organization shall take place the first day following.
At this organizational meeting the Council shall elect one of its members Vice President, who shall hold such office at the pleasure of Council. If either office of President or Vice President is vacated for any reason at any time, the vacancy shall be filled at the next monthly meeting. If the Vice President of Council is elected to fill a vacancy in the office of President of Council, the vacancy created in the office of Vice President may be filled at the same meeting.
Also at this organizational meeting the Council shall set the time and place of its regular monthly meetings and designate a newspaper of general circulation within the Borough for the publication of official notices.
Borough solicitor Larry Clapper said it has always been the interpretation of Borough Council the organization meeting needed to begin by 8 p.m. not necessarily at 8 p.m.
“Since I’ve been solicitor it’s always started at 7 p.m., said Clapper.
“I’ve been solicitor since 1994 and it’s never started at eight.
When pressed on the issue Clapper went so far as to say his legal interpretation of that section of the charter is “the meeting should commence no later than eight.”
During the reorganization meeting, J.R. Watson was elected to the position of vice president. William Latchford had previously held the position.
The council set the times of their meetings for 2004 as the first and second Mondays of the month at 7 p.m. unless those dates fall on a legal holiday in which case the meeting will be held the following day.
The issue of designating a newspaper of general circulation for the publication of notices was tabled after council member Jennifer Bryan suggested investigating the costs involved in choosing a different newspaper than the one the borough has used in the past.
Solicitor Larry Clapper stated it was his opinion the newspaper did not have to be published in the borough but be one of general circulation in Tyrone.
Shortly before the end of the meeting the solicitor also called for a point of order when he explained he noticed the time of the meeting had been advertised as 7 p.m. He suggested to Mayor Patricia Stoner and council the should ratify the actions they had taken during the meeting since it had started prior to 7 p.m.
The mayor agreed with the suggestion and asked for a motion the actions taken prior to 7 p.m. be ratified. The motion was properly seconded and council voted unanimously to ratify their actions. Solicitor Clapper’s recommendation and council’s ratification both came after the scheduled start time of the public meeting.
“The meeting was begun at 6:45 p.m. in order to swear in the council people so they could take their seat, they have to be sworn in before they can sit on council,” said Clapper.
From that point on (after new and re-elected council members were sworn in) the meeting just started,” said Clapper.
“I did not see anyone come in who wasn’t there before (i.e. 6:45 p.m.)
“I noticed on the top of the agenda it said 7 p.m., I thought maybe it was just a typo,” said Clapper.
When it was clear the meeting had be advertised as 7 p.m., the attorney made a point of order to have the council’s actions ratified during the advertised time of the meeting.
