On November 15, 2015, we posted a link to a Zephyr story called, “Upheaval at Moab City Hall,” by Jim Stiles, on our facebook page. The article reached almost 5000 fb readers and was shared by many, including Julianne Waters, who re-posted the article on Moab City Councilwoman Heila Ershadi’s facebook page. What followed was a heated and somewhat contentious discussion.
Sometime late on November 17, Councilwoman Ershadi deleted all of her own comments and apparently de-activated her account. However, I had previously cut and pasted, and screenshot, the post and entire comment thread, a few hours before the deletions. A week later, Ershadi restored her comments and re-activated her account. But on Friday, December 4, she apparently de-activated her account again. As of 1:30 PM on December 8, it is still missing from fb. With Julianne Waters’ permission, we provide the comments in their entirety, before the deletions. Since then, more comments have been added, though none from Ershadi…JS
Here is the post and comment thread from the facebook page of: Julianne Waters
I for one was truly flabbergasted when I heard of Dave Olsen & Ken Daveys dismissal. This is a very interesting article and one that should be shared immediately with Mayor Dave and the City Council. There’s a lot of fishy stuff going on. What do you think, Heila Ershadi?
Heila Ershadi Julianne, I think if I were seeing the restructure from another perspective, and not from the inside, I would feel exactly like you. However, being on the inside, I was privy to other information. Because it involves personnel, it’s not legally or ethically advisable for me to discuss it.
It was a very, very hard choice for me. I live here, after all, and I knew that some people would be upset. I used to do a radio show with Ken. But making decisions because of your personal relationship with someone is just not ethical.
And certainly, it was not a surprise for David or Ken, I am quite sure. That’s a rumor that made it into print, unfortunately.
The city manager’s background was investigated by our hiring committee, which included Chief Navarre. Rebecca Davidson was forthcoming about the controversies she’s been involved in, and I do believe the committee did due diligence. That said, I’m getting refreshed on the specifics of their investigation, as I think that is important info to relay to the public.
The action of this city manager, and all city managers, should be reasonably scrutinized. It’s my duty (and all the council’s) to know what’s going on and take the public’s concerns seriously, and I have at least one meeting tomorrow to discuss some concerns regarding oversight and communication between staff, the city manager, and council. Not because I have evidence at this time to suggest that there’s major impropriety going on, but because if there is any opportunity to serve the public better, to improve transparency and communication, then we should take it.
I want to put out something that addresses head-on the concerns of the public, and teases out fact from rumor. (And perhaps other council members will want to do this, too, I am not sure yet. Just speaking for myself here). But I want to be really, really sure I have all the info before I start saying much. A half-truth can be worse than a lie, and gossip can seriously tear people’s lives apart. So it’s important to be careful, always.
Kerry Soliz IF the treatment that has been depicted by Jim Stiles is true then I too would be dismayed, however, at this point, I believe his report to be untrue. I do not believe there was a surprise firing and a two hour window to clean out an office. I believe both ken and Dave had notice this was going to happen, were given adequate advance notice and a decent severance package. I am disappointed in Jim for spreading gossip and instigating emotional reactions.
Before crucifying our council, I will wait to see what other information comes out.
Shame on you Jim.
Jim Stiles RE: Kerry Soliz reply comments above: Okay, Kerry Soliz…enough is enough. Get YOUR facts straight. First, I did not report that Dave Olsen had to vacate his desk in two hours— the Moab weeklies, the Times-Independent and the Moab Sun news first reported that information. What I did in the Zephyr story a couple weeks ago was to provide links to those articles. I also included links and long excerpts from other articles written about Rebecca Davidson by other news sources, from Davidson’s time as a city manager in Timnath, Colorado and Kemmerer, Wyoming. My sources included 9News in Denver, the Kemmerer Gazette, the Times-Independent and the Moab Sun News. The facts and information I provided were all substantiated and had been available online to the public, in some cases, for years. All I did was to consolidate that information.
Did you even read my article or do you base your accusations on the gossip and innuendo fed to you by others?
Yes, I have known Ken and Dave for many years, and I did not like the way they were treated, especially by city council members. I plead guilty to being loyal to decent, good men.
Here’s another link not in Jim’s article: http://www.thedenverchannel.com/…/small-town-paying-big…
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