Dispute over HMCC meetings

Letter addressed to CLLR Paul Morton who recently asked if  all HMCC meetings are open to the public to attend and to participate in. (correction Feb.10/14 1:08 PM) Mayor Rob Zwicker said he could not imagine them being closed.  (correction Feb.10/14 1:09 PM) 

Greetings Paul,  

Thank you for your message.

This issue you raised at a Council meeting has created considerable discussion within the HMCC Board.

I, for one, cannot understand why you felt it necessary to ask such questions appertaining to the HMCC Board & its procedures etc. at a Council meeting when it is clearly not a Council matter.

If indeed you were lobbied by “a couple of citizens” regarding questions pertinent to the HMCC Board and, if you didn’t know the answers, surely the correct person to approach seeking answers would be the current President.

I know you know who that is and why you did not follow that procedure both puzzles & disappoints me.

This whole issue has proved a major distraction to the more important, ongoing & upcoming agenda of the Board.

You asked me for the correct answer. As the current Secretary this is my response.

Re.....

·         HMCC BYLAWS OCT 29^TH 2008

·         Article VIII – meetings

(4) states......

·         The Board of Directors may meet for the dispatch of business, adjourn, and otherwise regulate its business as it may determine from time to time.

General meetings are to be held annually prior to the end of every October.

At that Annual General Meeting the HMCC Board of Directors are voted in for a two year term.

That meeting is the only meeting open to the public unless a special meeting of the members, (community), is called by the President or by the Board of Directors and shall be called upon the written request of ten members minimum of the community. The current 10 person Board meet every month and are not required to meet in a public place.

As you can see, members of the public are not members of the HMCC Board and therefore not allowed to attend HMCC Board of Directors meetings or at least not without the prior written invitation of the President as to make a Presentation for information purposes etc. to the Board members.

If this protocol has not been followed in the distant past the President serving at that time was out of order.

If by chance there has been precedent... that precedent was erroneous & the current Board of Directors are not obliged to breach the Bylaws again simply because there may have been that past precedent.

“Open to the Public” HMCC Board of Directors meetings will not be repeated unless the HMCC By-laws currently in place are changed to that effect, and by a majority vote, at a future HMCC General meeting.

No such meetings are planned at present.

·         I hope I have satisfied your curiosity & that you can relay my message on to your concerned citizens for their interest & information.

·         Members of the community are clearly not members of the HMCC Board and nowhere in the HMCC By-laws does it state that members of the community are entitled to attend HMCC Board of Directors meetings.

·         A summary of the Board of Directors monthly meetings are published on the HMCC website for all to read.

  

-David Old