MASON CITY – A press conference regarding the on-going bad blood between Mayor Eric Bookmeyer and Mason City Human Rights that was scheduled for 2 PM Friday at City Hall was cancelled.
Cameron Sarjeant, Human Rights Commision Chairman, said Friday afternoon that because “the entire commission was not on board” the decision was made to cancel the press conference.
Sarjent said that he felt moving forward with the press conference when the entire commission was not behind it could “create division within the Commission” and as chairman of the commission he did not want to see that take place.
Bookmeyer has refused to re-appoint a long-time commissioner, Kathy Gaines, despite her expertise in housing and other areas that are invaluable to the commission.
At a Human Rights Commission meeting held Thursday, the commission considered taking their “extreme displeasure” to the City Council and Mayor Bookmeyer as to why he refuses to re-appoint Gaines to the commission.
It “defies all logic,” said Commissioner Dean Genth, why Bookmeyer “would not tap into that goldmine” of knowledge.
The commission agreed to pursue taking some form of communication to Bookmeyer and the council regarding the status of Gaines. The commission did agree to look into adding Gaines as a “friend” of the commission.
It is well known that the city suffers from a shortage of volunteers to boards and commissions; there are examples of Bookmeyer appointing the same person to more than one board simultaneously. One city insider has stated numerous times that Bookmeyer “doesn’t really know anyone here. Just the same people, the same ‘gene pool.’ He’s out of touch with Mason City, and his contacts are dwindling.”
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I dealt with Kathye Gaines when serving clients with disabilities who she was payee for; I was the opposite of impressed.
Does she actually have experience in the HUD industry? All I could see was that she has worked for consumer credit counseling type of places for ever.
I would love to know which ones didn’t want the press conference. I can pretty much guess but don’t know 100 percent so can’t say if anyone knows who they were that didn’t want it would love to know.
Remember you have to forgive people that are mentally Ill so I forgive the Mayor……Jim
Misty I was standing near this overstuffed piece of hog excrement at a JDRF fundraiser and he was throwing out nonstop f bombs talking about some past council members. He is so full of himself and knows nothing about respect for anyone that isn’t one of his bent over cronies.
Bookmeyer is just a RUDE person all the way around. I saw him at Buffalo Wild Wings, who were hosting a lock up fundraiser for Muscular Dystrophy, at the time he was running for mayor. My son was there who is affected by Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Did Bookmeyer come and even say hello to him, NO. Did he even talk or ask about Muscular Dystrophy? NO. You know what he did say that my family heard and the others that were supporting MD? He said he was disappointed about not getting a larger “FREE” lunch! And he said if he really knew what that fundraiser was about, he never would have came. It interfered with his election of Mayor! I have no respect for a person who comes to a fundraiser for a life threatening disease and complains about the lack of FREE food and how it interrupted his time from his campaign. Yep, all in ear shot from my son who lives with this life threatening disease! What a guy he is! He is only where he is at because he is a selfish jerk just like all the other politicians!
You are a gossip and represent all that is wrong with Mason City and humanity at large.
Heard countless stories just like this one. Probably why the guy doesn’t show his face in public anymore unless its in another town to accept an award.
Bookmeyer should take the cure and dry out.
Had a chance to talk with a player in this debacle today. Was told the Mayor got pissed because, in a majority vote, the Commission decided not to send te report to the Council at that time. I was told the HRC wanted to discuss it some more at their next meeting. The HRC is nt a dictatorship. If they decided not to send the report forward , Mrs. Gaines couldn’t send it forward on her own. Bookmeyer changed his mind on the Friday before the Council meeting and pulled her reappointment after calling her and reading her the riot act for the Board’s action. Democracy’s a bitch, isn’t it?
Then I guess the question is WHY did they decide not to send a report?? If that’s the case, they did this to themselves.
I don’t follow the human rights commission close enough but it seems to me that if there is this much controversy with the board and the mayor then the council needs to step in and settle it. The mayor is a figure head and the council is the board the people elected to take charge and if they aren’t willing to step on the board or the mayors toes then they should resign and let the people elect a council who will step up for all the people in Mason City.
The mayor says Kathy is being relieved of her duties because she did not provide reports that are required by the City. Did the HR Commission discuss this problem at their meeting? If they want Kathy back on the commission, did they assign the reporting requirement to someone else who has the time and is willing to assemble them? The mayor and council are not going to be very willing to reinstate Kathy because those reports have not been provided as required. Kathy was ordered to provide them in the past and didn’t do it. Not a smart move. She opened the door to losing her position, regardless of how valuable her skills are to the commission. If the commission is already in trouble, you don’t press your luck. The real issue is that she didn’t do her job thoroughly and it has given the mayor a reason to appoint a person of his choosing to the position. The HR Commission is going to have to guarantee that the council will get those monthly financial reports, see that it happens, and then beg to get Kathy reappointed. Kathy needs to apologize for failing to provide those reports as ordered and offer some type of explanation. If there’s more to the story, let’s hear it.
You’re absolutely right. Whether or not she was an expert on housing, if the required reports were not completed, that’s cause for dismissal.
I didn’t hear anyone addressing the issues the Mayor allegedly has with the commission – they just seemed focused on arguing for the board member. If I were them – and if the mayor is as big a jerk as it sounds like – I would be scrambling to make darn sure he gets what he wants.
He won’t be mayor forever, but if they want the commission to stay alive, they’re going to have to do what he wants.
“Katie” I would agree that if Kathy did not provide reports the board or the city council required then she should not have been re-appointed. But if the board and the council do not speak out we will never know the real truth. We have the Mayors point of view but that is just half the story. If the mayor has not been truthful in his statements in the article in the globe he should be called out on it. The public has a right to know if we are being mislead by this mayor.
Very true. That’s the question.