Main Street Milton under fire with city council

MILTON — As Main Street Milton continues to work toward entering a contract with Imogene Theatre, City Councilman George Jordan has growing concerns.

According to the city councilman, the non-profit continues to go against the Sunshine Law they agreed to operate under.

During his council report given during the July executive council meeting, Jordan said he had not received the proposed contract for MSM to manage Imogene prior to the MSM board meeting. He said days before the board meeting he received a call form the organization's director, Ed Spears, telling him that the MSM board President Cassandra Sharp Sharp had requested a discussion to remove him from the MSM board be placed on their agenda. 

While the item was not brought up at the MSM board meeting, Jordan said he surmised that this was a tactical move to omit him from seeing the proposed contract for MSM taking over the management of Imogene Theatre. He said he felt that Spears and Sharp knew that with his business background he would see possible issues in the contract presented by MSM.

"Mr. Spears said Ms. Sharp instructed him to not copy non-voting members, actually by law I am a voting member of the board," Jordan said. "I have just honored MSM’s desires and let that subject lie."  

Jordon said that on Page 7 of the contract, currently under review by Milton's city attorney,  it says “no publicity, release or announcement concerning this agreement or transaction contemplated hereby shall be issued without advanced approval of the party." 

According to Jordan, the wording showed that MSM was "attempting to keep the public from knowing the contract details until after the contract was passed and I believes is unacceptable and illegal."

Councilman Casey Powell said he wanted to make it very clear that since MSM has agreed to operate under Sunshine Law they cannot withhold any information from the public.

“I understand they have agreed to be under the Sunshine and need to be under the Sunshine," Powell said. "From their perspective, even if they don’t believe they should be, they have agreed to be, which means they need make sure they are following the procedures that go along with that. … Any board member that is on the board should have access to all the information as provided to all others, that shouldn’t ever be an issue in my opinion.”

Councilwoman Sharon Holley said she would like to see a special meeting called on MSM to discuss the concerns over the program.

“It’s very disturbing to me," she said. "Some people are going to say it’s personal between me and a (MSM) board member and you’re exactly right. It’s very personal for me and the taxpayers I represent in this entire city." 

Main Street Milton did not respond to a request for comment at the time of this publication.

Click to listen:

LISTEN: From the Newsroom of the SRPG

This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Main Street Milton under fire with city council