Sullivan County legislators get private update on jail plans By Andrew Beam Times Herald-Record MONTICELLO — A couple of behind-closed-doors meetings were held Tuesday in an effort to bring county legislators up to speed on a proposal to build a new $50 million county jail before they will discuss it in public. Republican and Democratic lawmakers met in caucus meetings with LaBella Associates, the engineering and design firm selected to design the new jail and to go over details ahead of a July 17 Executive Committee meeting where a public discussion will be held on the topic. Legislature Chairman Scott Samuelson said the mainly informational meetings were necessary since there are several newly elected county legislators who needed to get caught up. I think its important for legislators to be fully aware of what theyre talking about before having a public discussion, said Samuelson. However, Robert Freeman, executive director of the state Committee on Open Government, said Tuesdays meetings fell into a gray area of the state public meetings law. In meetings where theyre led by design to avoid the existence of public meetings, its not inconceivable a court could find them in violation (of the public meetings law), Freeman said. Legislature Minority Leader Alan Sorensen said while he also believed legislators should be educated on the most up-to-date details regarding the plans, he wasnt too keen on having the meetings in private. However, he said the information presented wasnt anything the legislators or the public hadnt heard before, with some of the discussion focused on why the Mapes site (located behind Monticello Raceway) was chosen. Im generally not a big fan of that process, but there seemed to be a consensus of my fellow legislators that liked that approach, Sorensen said of the private meetings. But I know that presentation has been provided in various committees within the last couple of months and certainly over the last couple of years. Legislator Jonathan Rouis, who wasnt able to attend the meetings, said he thought it was a good idea to educate the new legislators about the current plans for the proposed facility. He also didnt think it was necessary for the public to be present for the meetings. The public has seen this over and over, Rouis said. I dont believe (having the public present) would have made a difference. abeam@th-record Sullivan County legislators took part in a couple of meetings behind close doors Tuesday about plans to replace the county jail, above. JIM SABASTIAN/For the Times Herald-Record
Posted on: Thu, 10 Jul 2014 13:05:58 +0000
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