By Commissioner Jean Curtiss
Missoula, Mont. 

Commissioner Curtiss proposes facilitator to get Seeley Lake Sewer back on track

 

August 9, 2018



Letter to the Community of Seeley Lake -

I have worked with the Seeley Lake Sewer District Board for almost 18 years. The hard work of these dedicated volunteers has resulted in almost $16 M in grants and loans to fund this first phase of the project. The funders for the project are concerned that the project seems stalled.

A majority of the property owners in the Seeley Lake Sewer District did not protest the proposed levy of special assessments for the district last November, giving the board the authority to go forward with the designed project. After attending the Seeley Lake Sewer Board meeting in July, I have been asked if there was anything I could do to help get this sewer project back on track because the board seems to be conflicted about how to go forward.

Being on an elected board is hard. It takes time to figure out how each person communicates, processes information and makes decisions. Figuring out how to come together, establish a level of trust and focus on engaging in a civil discourse is important. Once a board gets to know each other and builds some trust it is easier to function as a unit. Communication, respect and civil discourse are essential. The public has a right to expect community boards to work together, to be respectful and to hold meetings on the designated date and time each month.

I have personally communicated with the full board and suggested they use a facilitator to help them work through the issues of the past that are keeping them from working together. It would be a good investment of time and a little money and the community members who have talked to me would appreciate the effort. They have not agreed to this path, yet.

I know some of the new board members have some questions about the project so, I also propose using the same person to facilitate a work session with the engineers to make sure everyone understands the project as designed and the funding.

The facilitator is available Aug. 13, a day that currently has a ‘special meeting’ for the election of board officers proposed, just three days before the regular board meeting of Aug. 16. My proposal was for the board to spend four hours on the 13th, figuring out how to work together followed by a work session to understand the project before their regular meeting Aug. 16 where they should elect officers and conduct business they were elected to do for Seeley Lake.

As noted in the recent letter from the Missoula City County Board of Health to the Seeley Lake Sewer Board [printed below], a public sewer system in Seeley Lake is needed to protect public health. The available funding is essential to make the project the most affordable it can be and could be lost if action is not taken soon. Please encourage the Seeley Lake Sewer Board to consider using the facilitator to help them get back on track.

 

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