MASON CITY – NIT has received word that Mayor Eric Bookmeyer is ousting a long-time volunteer who has served on the Mason City Airport Board for decades, and word on the street is his decision smacks of political payback and his on-going issue with older persons.
A source has described a developing situation where Bookmeyer has informed Joni Dunn that she will not be re-appointed to the Airport Commission in part because he was not given enough power in decisions the board is considering. The source tells NIT that the mayor wants “fresh perspectives” on the board. Dunn is an elderly woman who has served on the board for decades. In Bookmeyer’s first term in office, he told a Mason City woman who was in her 50’s that he prefers younger people with fresh ideas to be appointed to boards. He then informed her that he would not re-appoint her to a city board. Bookmeyer is currently battling a lawsuit which, among other accusations, involves age discrimination.
Dunn is set to be replaced by Marti Rodamaker, President of First Citizens Bank. Rodamaker – about age 51 – is much younger than Dunn, who is in her mid-70’s, sources tell NIT.
Rodamaker donated $250 to Eric Bookmeyer’s election campaign in 2009 and $500 in 2013 to help him get re-elected. She graduated from the same college as Bookmeyer – Luther College in Decorah – in 1984. Bookmeyer held his re-election campaign bank account in her bank – where her father, O. Jay Tomson, is CEO. He also contributed financially to Bookmeyer’s campaign to the tune of $500 in 2013. Both were on Bookmeyer’s 2013 re-election “exploratory committee”. At any given time, their bank may hold millions of dollars for the city of Mason City, the finance department has told NIT.
Dunn’s term expires in November, the city’s website shows. Rodamaker would face council approval.