Voth and Ecret have not been good for Moses Lake

I appreciate the editorial board trying to elevate discourse for the current local political campaign. Here are my concerns:

Mr. Voth and Mr. Ecret met prior to the action taken to remove Mr. Gavinski. These decisions were made behind closed doors without public notice. This may have been illegal and is clearly contrary to the intent of the Open Public Meeting Laws.

Mr. Gavinski was removed, at a Council meeting, with additional special invited guests to witness the public humiliation. Was this “bullying?” I believe Mr. Gavinski was removed primarily because he was questioning the firemen/paramedics’ excessive amounts of sick leave and overtime. That was his job, to question budgets out of balance. It was totally inappropriate when the fireman stood up and applauded when Mr. Gavinski was removed. This action cost the city of Moses Lake a minimum of $250,000 and maybe as much as $500,000. Mr. Voth wouldn’t like to be treated as he treated Mr. Gavinski.

Mr. Voth didn’t like the City Council’s adopted procedure for the Mayor’s election. Mrs. Liebriecht should have been the next mayor but his wish to be mayor was more important.

If Mr. Voth and Mr. Ecret have done so much together for the City of Moses Lake, when did Mr. Voth know that Mr. Ecret no longer lived in the city limits? I believe this has rendered every decision that Mr. Ecret made, once he no longer lived in Moses Lake city limits, legally questionable and I wonder about Mr. Voth’s responsibility to let the public know that Mr. Ecret had moved out of the city.

I hope these incidents address actions, not the person of Mr. Voth. Please do your homework before deciding whom you will be voting for.

Jon Lane

Former city councilman and mayor

Moses Lake