It has been a very long time since we have observed such outrageous conduct by elected Directors of any association/institution
"The truth is a hard dog to keep under the porch"
Note: Scroll down to the letter below this one for more information. It would appear that Dripping Springs Water Supply Corporation Board President Steve Harris and Director Larry Brewer are in a heap of trouble with members. We certainly welcome any comment they may have. They are facing a member recall petition and charges for removal from two sitting board directors. The board meets the first Monday of the month (next, Feb. 7), 7 pm, at the water supply's office, 101 Hays, Suite 406. Call the office 512.858.7897 for more details and the next meeting's agenda.
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Letter to the Editor:
My wife and I moved into our new home in mid 2004. We just assumed, like all the members, that the Dripping Springs Water Supply Corporation was operating just fine since every time we turn on the faucet we get water.
We recently heard that there were some issues with the Water Supply's Board (of Directors) so we started attending the meetings. We consider the meeting on January 4, 2011 one of the most outrageous events we have witnessed in years. I must also say that the couple of meetings we attended prior to this meeting did not inspire confidence in the Board. The meeting lasted from 7pm until 11pm and still did not cover the entire agenda due to the continuous commentary from Mr. Harris (Board president), Mr. Brewer (director) and the Board's attorney Mr. Haag.
These three folk's continuing commentary left little to no opportunity for (board directors) Mr. Walden, Mr. Garnett and Mr. Wolf to contribute to the agenda.
It has been a very long time since we have observed such outrageous conduct by elected Directors of any association/institution. Had Mr. Harris conducted the meeting in a fair and impartial manner most, if not all, of the theatrics that occurred would not have happened.
The meeting was completely out of control, allowing Mr. Brewer to actually threaten to sue members who had signed a petition for a membership vote on removal of Mr. Harris and Mr. Brewer. The membership is merely exercising their constitutional rights for a more transparent look at actions taken by the DS Water Corporation Board.
We are particularly appalled by the incredible legal expenses that the Board has incurred in 2010. It is my understanding that the total cost for 2010 will approach $150,000 or more. This is not surprising as Mr. Harris instructs counsel Mr. Haag to take the minutes of the meeting at a cost of $200 per hour. Nice work if you can get it.
I have examined legal expenses of the Board from January to September of 2010 by filing a Texas Open Records Request and find them to be absolutely outrageous. It is apparent that the Board's president is not able to do the simplest functions without a couple of hours consultation with Mr. Haag. Mr. Haag has certainly landed a great client.
Fortunately, the Board has a new accounting firm which is teaching the Board the difference between Accrual Basis and Cash Basis Accounting, which apparently some members did not understand. It appears the Board has been operating under Cash Basis Accounting (commonly called checkbook accounting), which is definitely not the way it should be operating.
This Board needs to have some long range planning and Capital Improvement Projects if they ever expect to grow and at least have an automated bill collections system where customers can can have an option to pay by credit card, automatic back draft or simply show up and visit with the friendly office staff while paying your bill in person. The Board needs to have a good working relationship with the city of Dripping Springs, Hays County and State of Texas water officials. Honorable people can disagree without being disagreeable.
It is this member's request that the Board accept the two documents, the membership (recall) petition and the charges filed by Board Members Walden and Garnett against Mr. Harris and Mr. Brewer to proceed. Let Mr. Wolf, who made substantial efforts to move the Petition and Complaint forward, continue to follow the By-Laws as he tried multiple times to do only to be constantly interrupted by the Board's attorney, Mr. Haag, who operates under the opinion that the Board can't function without him.
I will say that on the Board's current operating path, they are and will continue to be in desperate need of legal counsel. Had all the membership attended the meeting, there may have been a need for the Deputy Sheriff, who was present, to intervene to stop what could have been a public lynching. The truth is a hard dog to keep under the porch.
Ron and JoAnne Kelly
Dripping Springs, Texas 78620
11 comments:
During this meeting, Mr Harris and Mr Brewer specifically said that they had personal knowledge that equipment and Materials belonging to the WSC have been used on "Side Jobs". If msterials belonging to the WSC were misappropriated to personal use, Why have these Directors not come forward with the proof of these allegations. Each Director has the Duty to bring such things forward Immediately when they have knowledge of it. Why are these two director hinting this without disclosing it, Mr O'Dell should investigate this Immediately. Are they just saying this to imply the General MAnager is a crook, or do they have evidence? Odell please find out.
Sounds like it’s time to bring in the Texas Rangers and roundup the whole bunch and haul ‘em off to the hoosegow. I believe we have anarchy in Drippin’ Springs, so where is the Attorney General on this mess? This is serious dysfunction of a public utility and could negatively impact the fine citizens of that otherwise nice little community.
Mr Odell, You have done a real public service in the past months bring this to public notice. If it had not been for your articles I would never have known of this mess. Thank you for your work
1. Re: LCRA: The Board of LCRA is offering to sell ALL their water utilities to a single buyer. LCRA will not sell the water system piece-meal.
2. Re: DSWSC extending service area: In 2000, when DSWSC was negotiating with LCRA for service to DS, LCRA asked DSWSC if DSWSC would provide retail water service to Sunset Canyon. DSWSC declined the opportunity and LCRA installed the distribution lines and is now the retail water provider to that subdivision.
3. Re: Board Recall: Much attention is focused on Harris and Brewer and the legal fees (which are approx $1 million over the past 10-years). There is an underlying issue that is causing this board-member versus board-member hostility. That issue is Doug Cones and his $2 million, 10-year contract. It's really a fight between the Cones supporters (Walden, Garnett and Wolfe) and the Cones detractors (Harris and Brewer). A simple and reasonable solution is for ALL board members to resign, for Cones to resign and allow the membership to elect a new board and hire a new manager.
Who stands to gain from the bankruptcy or closure of the Dripping Springs Water Supply? All of this looks like an intentional effort to destroy the DSWS.
To DSWSC MEMBER, I believe you overstate the contract's value. But the none of the director seem to feel that he is paid too much. After all Mr Harris negociated the contract and is the one who insisted it be for ten years instead of the 5 Mr Cones wanted.
In any event, there is absolutely no questioning of the amount in the minutes or discussions in meeting in the last year. They must feel its ok
This type of contentiousness over our water is good. Such extreme disagreement between distinct specials interests will work it's way to a solution, assuming the righteous pro-user forces prevail. If not, then more utility business pain is necessary to create the momentum to solve the impasse.
If the Board falls apart, then it is time to restructure the management of the DP water assets and the Board itself to better serve the DP community.
Legal anarchy has become the arrogant mantra of right wing, pro-business hustlers who think they are above the law - well, here is a taste of it.
Ladies and Gentlemen, as Members of the Dripping Springs Water Supply Corporation, we are charged with the responsibility of “tending to business” or at the least setting up a Board of Directors with which to do this for us. Over the past several months the excellent job that the current Board of Directors had been doing has been reduced to what some have said would rival a Circus SideShow. That should serve as a proud moment for us all.
Let’s talk about our Board of Directors and I say it in that manner because we, as Members, are the reason that they are in office and some of the blame falls to us. However, that should be where the buck stops. The Board of Directors is comprised of 5 grown men who, until the events leading up to the current situations at hand, worked together for the betterment of the Water Supply Corporation and did a swell job. Now however, they seem to be at odds at each turn and this started with the penning of the General Manager’s contract back in 2009. There was a large amount of controversy over this document but I am of the opinion that the document was well deserved and a long time past due. Along with it though, came the control issues that the current Board President thinks that he should be having.
Megalomania is defined as a psychopathological condition characterized by delusional fantasies of wealth, power, or omnipotence and an obsession with grandiose or extravagant things or actions. It is quite obvious and apparent that the current President operates under these delusions when you attend meetings and you observe him “sitting at the high table” like a toad squatting on a lily pad as member after member ask for his removal during the Public Input portion of the monthly Board Meetings. He thrives on the attention that he receives whether it good or bad and has no regard to the membership and our well being even though he postures that thought each time he opens his mouth. He professes that he is concerned with all of the monies that have been spent in attorney’s fees. However, what he fails to tell you is that he and the rest of the Board, because they allow him the opportunity, are the ones spending our monies in order to get the General Manager under an Employee Handbook, when his contract clearly states his purpose and duties. The current President has also had the Office Staff excused from attending meetings and taking the minutes and the Board has procured the services of the Corporation Attorney to take the minutes at his normal Attorney Fee of $200.00 per hour. The current President of the Board went so far as to approve a motion to have the Attorney go back and change, modify and/or delete contents in the 2010 minutes that had already been taken as he saw necessary if he thought there was too much information in them. One would ask if this motion were to keep the membership not as informed as it should have been? It is pretty bad when the Attorney himself has said that his $156,000 + fees for the 2010 business year could have been cut in half if it were not for all of the “in-fighting” amongst the Board. The current Board President also had the meeting dates removed from our monthly bills in order, some would say, to cut down on there being more participation in the meetings. The Board President makes the agendas so long that during the meeting, if he can draw it out long enough, people will give up and leave because of the lateness of the hour and then he runs through the items as he sees fit. I don’t want to give the current President anymore attention than is possibly warranted because that is what he seems to thrive on however, members, he has become a detriment to our Water Supply Corporation.
Anon Continued
Recently there was a petition that was sent out and signed by 146 members, which is more than 10% of the membership required under the bylaws, asking for the recall and removal of two members of the Board of Directors. Even though a member, as is stated in the Water Supply Corporation Bylaws presented this, the current President refuses to call the Special Election because he doesn’t want to and there are other Board members who are bowing to him on this decision. Ladies and Gentlemen, it is not his right -- it is his duty to call this election. In fact there was an additional petition filed by two Board Members asking that the Special Meeting be called in order to remove the two Board Members in question that, under the Water Supply Corporation bylaws, doesn’t even require signatures from the membership. The current Board President has even gone so far as to move that the Corporation Attorney investigate the people that signed the petition as to how they got the petition and who presented it to them. I’m not sure why that matters because we, as Americans, have the constitutional right to vote and not to be intimidated by other Board Members with the threat of being sued for exercising that right! And there goes more money that could be spent wisely somewhere else!
Members this is a call to arms!! It took America less time to impeach the President of the United States than it is taken us to try and remove this bad seed from having any control over the Water Supply Corporation, it’s monies and it’s interests. It is time for us all to step up and say, “Enough is enough!” Please wake up before it’s too late and make your voice heard.
Way to call a spade a Spade. Harris is unstable and is fighting for his life. He will stoop to anything to hold onto his job. Get Rid of Him. Brewer is backing him and so is Wolf Get rid of them all.
Why Won't they let the members vote? What are they afraid of? Wolf pretends to just want ot do it correctly, but still he has voted with Harris every Time. He may be a retired minister, but he has forgotten what the Bible says. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
I see Harris working at Wolf's house many time last week. Isn't this a conflict of interest. I thought it was illegal to do business with other board members without disclosing it. Is Harris cutting a deal with Wolf to get work done in exchange for his vote?
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