As a result of the assembly’s decision last May to grant a conditional use permit for a heliport to George Campbell, the Haines Borough was named in two lawsuits – one filed by Chilkat Valley Rural Citizens, who claimed that the issuance of Campbell’s permit violated borough law, and a second filed by Campbell, challenging the borough’s authority to make such decisions.
Last Tuesday, CVRC made the assembly an offer to settle its lawsuit.
Settlement negotiations in lawsuits affecting the borough are typically discussed between the borough assembly and its attorney confidentially and once terms are reached, a settlement agreement and its details are made in public.
The borough assembly sought to have that settlement discussion with CVRC in executive session under the law’s allowance for “matters, the immediate knowledge of which would clearly have an adverse effect upon the finances of the public entity.”
Holding the settlement discussion of the CVRC lawsuit in public would have made known to Campbell – who has his own lawsuit against the borough in this matter – the borough’s negotiations, including its willingness to pay for a lawsuit settlement.
The borough assembly may or may not want to settle with Campbell, as his lawsuit –challenging borough authority over heliports – is of a much more consequential nature.
Partly because the CVRC plaintiffs were acting as their own attorney, last week’s meeting was awkward. But it was clearly an assembly effort to settle one lawsuit while not jeopardizing the public’s interest – or public money – in the other.
Tom Morphet, Mayor