Soap Lake Council limits mayor’s authority

SOAP LAKE — Soap Lake City Council approved a slate of resolutions Wednesday night aimed at safeguarding city records, tightening financial controls and limiting Mayor Peter Sharp’s access to city systems amid ongoing investigations into his conduct.  

The actions follow the council’s previously issued vote of no confidence in Sharp. 

No Confidence 

City staff issued a formal statement supporting the council’s vote of no confidence at its last meeting, citing concerns about secret recording of city employees, financial irregularities, financial concerns, ongoing investigations and the damage caused to the city and public trust. 

“The employees of the city are dedicated to serving our community with integrity, transparency and professionalism,” Soap Lake Police Department Administrative Assistant Jody Siebert said. “We call upon the mayor, Peter Sharp, to take immediate responsibility for your actions or to step aside.” 

Siebert also added personal concerns, saying the mayor had lied about security cameras, public records requests and the RV park host position, alleging documents were created in November but backdated to July.  

“His conduct is unethical. There is no other way to describe it. He should resign,” she said. 

Protections 

Council member John Carlson introduced a measure requiring city employees and officials to preserve all physical and electronic records, refrain from deleting or altering documents and return any previously removed materials. 

The resolution also removes the mayor’s access to city bank accounts, Springbrook and Banner Bank systems and suspends Sharp’s use of city credit cards.  

“The city council found that the mayor engaged in a pattern of conduct involving secretly recording city employees, gifting of public funds and or unauthorized expenditure of city funds, exceeding the authority granted to the office of the mayor under applicable law and city policy without proper authorization from or approval of the city council,” Carlson read from the resolution.   

Further, it directs staff to report suspected violations to the city attorney or Mayor Pro Tem. It also allows the city attorney to report concerns to agencies conducting investigations.  

“The City Council hereby declares it may be the victim of crimes including theft of misappropriation of funds or destruction of public documents and records,” Carlson read. 

Camera removal 

Council unanimously voted to remove smart cameras and related devices from city facilities and place them in storage pending the outcome of ongoing investigations. 

“These are not used for law enforcement,” Council Member Susan Carson said. “Law enforcement actually has their own cameras… so that’s why they need to be removed now that we’re going through this investigation.” 

Police Chief Patrick Canady confirmed he was comfortable with the removal. 

Finance director 

Council Member Andrew Arnold introduced a resolution allowing former City Finance Director Jeff Balentine to return temporarily as city finance director.  

According to Sharp, during his mayor’s message, he attempted to schedule a special meeting to authorize an interlocal agreement with the City of LaCrosse so payroll could be completed with Balentine’s resignation on March 19. 

However, a quorum was not reached for a special meeting to occur March 31, according to public records obtained from the city.  

“As a result, employees remain unpaid through no fault of the administration,” Sharp said.  

Balentine had resigned March 19 due to concerns over Sharp’s alleged mishandling of city funds. That included contracts executed improperly and possibly inappropriate gifting of public funds, according to his resignation letter. 

Under an approved contract, Balentine will have no direct contact with Sharp. Instead, communication must go through the city attorney, City Clerk Coley Olson or Mayor Pro Tem Kayleen Bryson. The agreement removes Sharp from Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act and Family Medical Leave Act‑related accounts. Balentine will oversee all financial processes until a permanent replacement is hired. 

“This is the most responsible and immediate solution to ensure that the city employees are paid properly and the financial operations are handled by somebody with direct knowledge of the city systems,” City Attorney Julie Norton said.  

The resolution passed unanimously. 

Website management 

Citing outdated information, technical issues and limited staff access, the council voted unanimously to transfer management of the city’s website to Grant County IT until a city administrator/treasurer is hired. 

Grant County IT already provides support for city emails and devices, and officials said the transition would allow department heads to update their own sections while the county oversees technical maintenance and accessibility compliance. 

“We’ve been having a lot of problems with forms not loading and information not updating,” Carson said. “Only one person has access to any of that… so we need Grant County to go in there and fix it for us.” 

    During the Soap Lake City Council meeting, Soap Lake Police Department Administrative Assistant Jodie Siebert read a formal statement from city employees expressing their support in the council’s no confidence vote.