Moses Lake school board silent on community resolution

MOSES LAKE — A resolution intended to reinforce the Moses Lake School Board’s commitment to “value and respect” differing opinions in the wake of February’s hotly contested school construction bond failed Thursday evening for lack a second.

The measure, proposed by Board Member Eric Stones, was intended to show that despite the difference in the community over the $135 million bond, the school board will respect “the right to express and voice differences of opinion” in the community and committed the board “to continue to work with parents, students, and community members in a collaborative effort to meet the education needs of our students.”

“Given the lack of a second, we can’t take any action,” said School Board President Kevin Donovan.

The bond measure, which passed with a bare 60.03 percent majority after a lengthy recount, is currently being disputed in the state’s appeals court. Opponents of the bond argue that the county auditor failed to follow election rules by not calling people whose ballots were missing or had signatures that did match those on file.

“If for some reason this still get reversed in court, we’ve still got to do something,” Stones said during Thursday night’s meeting.

Stones, however, emphasized he had not withdrawn his support from the bond or the building of a second high school, only the board’s vote in late April to actually authorize the physical issuing of bonds as long as the election results were being in court.

“At this point, we won the election and we’re going to move forward,” Stones said.

Board members were silent, however, when Donovan — following Robert’s Rules of Order — asked for a member to second the measure. Because it was not seconded, the board could not vote.

“My personal thought is that no one wanted to stir up the pot,” board member Susan Freeman told the Columbia Basin Herald on Friday. “There’s already a lot of muck in the water, we don’t want to stir it up.”

“I was surprised, but I knew it was a possibility too,” Stones told the Herald on Friday. “It was an interesting moment for me.”

Two members of the Moses Lake School Board are standing for reelection this year — President Kevin Donovan and Vice President Oscar Ochoa. Ochoa faces one opponent, Vickey Melcher, while Donovan faces two opponents, Elliott Goodrich and James Liebrecht.

Charles H. Featherstone can be reached via email at countygvt@columbiabasinherald.com.