Wrangell Sentinel -

The Borough Assembly met in open session on Sept. 11 to take the most recent report from Borough Manager Tim Rooney, and to deal with a pair of resolutions dealing with disposal of property and the establishment of a canvass board for the upcoming general election.

The lawsuit between the city and former Wrangell Medical Center administrator Noel Rea, and six former members of the WMC Board of Directors, was a key part of Rooney’s report to the assembly this week – and informed them of actions the city is pursuing against Rea.

A Sept. 4 filing by borough attorney Bob Blasco, which was attached to Rooney’s report, is asking the court for permission to amend the city’s complaint against the seven individuals based on the claim that a pair of amendments to Rea's contract are void, and asking the court to declare the actions of the recalled board members ultra vires and illegal, as well as ordering Rea to return a six-figure severance package to the Borough.

An ultra vires act is, legally, any action taken by an entity that is beyond the power or scope of their authority. Acts deemed to be ultra vires are considered to be invalid and revocable under the U.S. Constitution.

The amended complaint is also asking for Rea to return two pieces of property the borough contends is theirs – and which may contain digital communications relevant to the case.

“On August 1, 2012, (Olinda) White advised the Borough Manager that Defendant Selle-Rea had continued to possess Borough/WMC property and that he refused to return that property, specifically, an iPad and Blackberry cell phone,” the complaint states. “Those items were paid for with WMC funds for Defendant Selle-Rea's use while the WMC Administrator. Neither item was Selle-Rea's personal property.”

According to the complaint, on Aug. 3, the borough made a written request to Rea's attorney to immediately return the iPad and cell phone. On Aug. 9, Rea advised the borough, through his attorney, that he had “discarded” the cell phone and he intended to keep the iPad for his “personal matters.”

The amended complaint contends that Rea had no authority to discard the cell phone, which was property belonging to the borough, and that he has no authority to retain possession of the iPad, which is also alleged to be property belonging to the borough.

“The cell phone likely contained relevant evidence in this case, consisting of phone calls and text messages between Defendant Selle-Rea and the six recalled board member defendants, and likely others, with relevant information as to the facts and causes of action,” the complaint states, going on to make an equal comparison with the iPad. “The iPad phone likely contains relevant evidence in this case, consisting of e-mails between Defendant Selle-Rea and the six recalled board member defendants, and likely others, with relevant information as to the facts and causes of action in this First Amended Complaint.”

Additionally, the amended complaint expands on the charge of conspiracy leveled against the former board and Rea.

“The six recalled board member defendants and Defendant Selle-Rea conspired to enrich Defendant Selle-Rea and personally benefit Selle-Rea at the expense of the WMC and the Borough in at least the following ways: a) Signing the Second Amendment after the six recalled board member defendants knew they would be the subject of a petition to recall; b) Signing the Second Amendment purporting to amend, modify and change the February 22, 2010 contract without a prior resolution of the WMC board approving the Second Amendment; c) Holding a board meeting the day after the recall election, knowing they had been recalled, and knowing that the certification of those results would not occur until June 25, 20 12; d) Knowing that by holding a meeting on June 20, 2012, the day after the recall election, there would be only one board member able to vote on any action who was not subject to the recall, and thus, that the six recalled board member defendants would have a quorum and majority to take any action they wanted...”

The conspiracy charge further alleges that the former board had intent, prior to their final meeting, to fire Rea and initiate his severance pay by, “e) Apparently communicating amongst themselves before the meeting of June 20, 2012, and possibly with Defendant Selle-Rea, to plan to make a motion to terminate Selle-Rea without cause at the June 20 meeting for the sole purpose of putting into effect the purported severance payments to Selle-Rea of approximately $1,000,000 of public funds.”

Neither Rea nor his attorney, David H. Shoup of Anchorage, could be reached for comment.

In other matters, Rooney’s report included an update on the downtown roads renovation project at Lynch Street.

“As discussed in the August 24, 2012 Borough Manager's Report, (staff) had been in the process of developing cost estimates to address paving concerns on Lynch Street.” He stated. “Currently, the plan is to pave it with six inches of concrete to match the work already performed on Brueger Street and the North end of Campbell Drive.”

According to Rooney, under that plan, the borough would purchase the concrete and perform the excavation and preparation for concrete installation.

“Quotes have now been received and the City and Borough of Wrangell is moving forward with this project as the quotes received for the labor portion of the project do not exceed $25,000 and are within the spending authority of the Borough Manager.”

A budget amendment for the project will be presented at the September 25, 2012 Borough Assembly meeting. Work began late last week.

Rooney also added that the Southeast Alaska Power Agency is offering a $10,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons who fired rifle shots into transformers on its transmission towers in August.

The damage resulted in both Wrangell and Petersburg having to switch to diesel generation to provide power until repairs were made and hydropower was restored.

Both Wrangell and Petersburg lost power for nearly 50 hours, and resulted in an average cost of $1,000 per hour for diesel generation, for a total cost of $54,000.

Rooney also addressed the plan to put an initiative on the ballot for a reduction in Wrangell’s 7 percent sales tax – which is the highest per capita in the nation.

“(The) next step in initiative petition process now that the Borough Attorney has verified the petition application is for the petition sponsors – Mr. Ernie Christian and Ms. Rhonda Dawson – to obtain 94 signatures to place the initiative petition before the voters of Wrangell.”

Christian and Dawson have 90 days from the date the petition booklets are issued to obtain 94 signatures of registered voters. If the signatures are obtained and verified, the petition will be placed on the ballot on Oct. 1, 2013.

In new business, the assembly dealt with a resolution to convey foreclosed property to a group of purchasers, as well as naming assembly members Bill Privett, David Jack and Mayor Jeremy Maxand as the canvass board members for the Oct. 2 general election.

The next regularly scheduled meeting of the assembly is set for Sept. 25 at 7 p.m. at City Hall.