Town website leads to board confusion

Bev Hempel remembers being reappointed to the Saratoga Planning Commission, but does not remember when.

“I don’t remember details of my re-appointment other than it happened,” Hempel, Chairman of the Saratoga Planning Commission said in an email. “That was about the time my husband died after a long illness, and the focus of my memory from that time is not the specifics of my re-appointment to the Planning Commission. If there was some mistake made, it certainly was not intentional.”

There could have been a mistake made because public records suggest Hempel may not have been re-appointed to the position.

Hempel was first appointed to the Planning Commission March 2003, according to meeting minutes from the Planning Commission and the town of Saratoga regular meeting. She was appointed to fill a vacant position after Ken Collamer left the Planning Commission.

According to meeting minutes, Hempel’s first term expird December 2003. Hempel was not reappointed in December of 2003.

The question then became, was Hempel ever reappointed to her position?

“If for some reason we didn’t re-appoint Bev, it was an oversight,” said Saratoga Mayor John Zeiger. “It wasn’t a conspiracy.”

If Hempel does need to be re-appointed to her position, Zeiger can re-appoint her and have the motion ratified by The Saratoga Town Council, Zeiger said.

“If she needs to be re-appointed, she will be re-appointed,” he said.

The town of Saratoga is currently researching records to find out if Hempel was ever properly re-appointed to the Planning Commission, Zeiger said.

For initial appointments to the Planning Commission by the mayor, a town council must approve the decision, according to state statute. Re-appointments must also be approved by the town council.

Zeiger said if the the posision is vacated after someone resigns, he, as Mayor, can appoint a replacement without council approval.

Hempel’s initial appointment in 2003, however, was approved by The Saratoga Town Council, according to the town of Saratoga meeting minutes.

According to the town of Saratoga website, Hempel’s term was from December 2009 to 2012, but the website may be incorrect as well. The town is working to correct the website, but is also finding many other board members from several different boards have expired terms, Zeiger said.

According to the website, Randy Raymer and Leroy Stephenson needed to be re-appointed to the Upper Platte River Solid Waste Disposal District in September 2012.

James Elliott, Richard Raymer and George Griffin have expired terms on the Town of Saratoga Carbon County Impact Joint Powers Board, according to the website.

Rod Weinman’s term on the Planning Commission expired, Zeiger said. But the website states his term is good until 2015.

“I appreciate the fact all these people sitting on these boards are volunteering, but they have to take some responsibility” to submit letters of interest, Zeiger said.