Michael Hess, 14, was one of a number of people who spoke before Parkersburg City Council Tuesday night, demanding action be taken regarding alleged ethics violations by Mayor Bob Newell and Finance Director Ashley Flowers.
PARKERSBURG, W.Va. — More than 100 people attended Tuesday’s City Council meeting, with several speaking out about allegations of misconduct by Mayor Bob Newell and Finance Director Ashley Flowers during the session’s public forum.
That overshadowed the presentation by Newell of the nearly $28 million proposed 2015-16 municipal budget, an increase of less than 3 percent over the current budget.
A complaint was filed with the West Virginia Ethics Commission two weeks ago by Wood County Republican Party Chairman Rob Cornelius alleging a flash drive that contains more than 1,000 files shows Newell and Flowers were having an affair that resulted in misuse of city time, money and resources. The same day, five employees of the city Finance Department filed lawsuits alleging sexual harassment and a hostile work environment in reference to conversations, photographs and videos related to the alleged affair.
A recording posted online recently has the voices of a man and woman who appear to be Newell and Flowers discussing charges related to a trip and possible ethics violations.
It wasn’t until the fourth speaker – 14-year-old Michael Hess, who said he is active with the local TEA Party group – that the matter was addressed in the public forum, setting off a sometimes heated, sometimes sarcastic and occasionally raucous chain of remarks.
Hess and others chastised council for not acting on the allegations.
“If you want to sit in your seat again, listen to the people, take action on it, and you’ll win your seat again,” Hess said to applause.
Former Councilwoman Sharyn Tallman told the current council and mayor they had taken an oath to uphold the U.S. and West Virginia Constitutions and the trust of the people had been betrayed.
“Your proposed budget that you’ve received tonight is not worth the paper it’s printed on,” she said.
Newell had supporters in the crowd, though they appeared to be in the minority.
Tracy Hively, a Vienna resident who served as the mayor’s administrative assistant for more than 10 years, said she only ever saw Newell act with the city’s best interests in mind.
“I saw nothing inappropriate in that timeframe,” she said. “I say we wait ’til all the facts come out … before we presume anything.”
Hively’s words received some applause and at least one vocal jeer.
Parkersburg resident Eric Reynolds challenged the mayor and Flowers to admit they “did wrong.” City Attorney Joe Santer interjected, and council President J.R. Carpenter told Reynolds to address council, not individuals.
“If they’re willing to stand up and admit that they made a mistake, and they’re wrong, I’m willing to pay the $70 that they’re concerned about,” Reynolds said, a reference to a room service charge mentioned in the recording posted online this week.
Parkersburg resident Bobbie Short, who had spoken earlier about an unrelated complaint she had with the mayor’s office, came to the microphone again and noted the meeting began with the Lord’s prayer but people didn’t seem to be acting on the words in it.
“We asked for forgiveness and (said) ‘we forgive those,'” she said before saying to council, “And we just trust that you guys will do your job.”
One person in the crowd placed a sign reading “Resign or be impeached” on the front, center row of chairs after the meeting’s conclusion.
Newell did not respond during the public forum, but said after the meeting he appreciated the support he received.
“There are some legal issues that we’ll be following, and I think everyone should wait until the facts are in – all the facts,” he said.
Carpenter said prior to the public forum that council members could not address items that were not on the agenda.
After the meeting, he said there isn’t much council can do about the matter because it’s still under investigation by the West Virginia State Police and the state Ethics Commission.
“We could be acting prematurely,” Carpenter said. “Believe me, this is high on our radar as well.”
Right now, he said, council is focused on the budget, with hearings scheduled to start at 6 p.m. Tuesday in council chambers.
Newell noted the spending plan includes just three-fourths of the revenue the city predicts receiving from a 1 percent municipal sales tax approved in December after the city was accepted into the state’s expanded municipal home rule program. After the state’s 5 percent share for collecting and remitting the tax is deducted, that’s projected to be just over $3 million.
“Our financial future’s brighter now than at any time in our city’s history,” Newell said.
The mayor said he hopes to see more revenue come in, but it would be up to council to determine how it is spent. Some uses for any additional revenue could include addressing future pension liabilities and paying for federally mandated stormwater improvements.
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