Dripping Water directors resign before recall meeting is called to order

As the process unfolded, it became evident that there were three vacancies to be filled, and there were three candidates who were running to replace the directors

Note: We received this field report from an observer who attended Thursday night's much anticipated board meeting of the Dripping Springs Water Supply Corporation. Thanks to the citizen journalists and letter writers who have chimed in on this important story, and especially to RoundUp Contributing Editor Charles O'Dell who has written several in-depth articles leading up to last night's meeting, and without which many of the water supply's 1,400 customers and members may never have been informed of the internal turmoil that was occurring. O'Dell was unable to attend the meeting.

Send your comments to roundup.editor@gmail.com, to Mr. O'Dell at codell@austin.rr.com or click on the "comments" button at the bottom of the story

Special to the RoundUp

A surprise awaited everyone who attended the Director Recall meeting in Dripping Springs at the First Baptist Church. The meeting was a recall election to determine whether Director Steve Harris and Director Larry Brewer would be removed from office and then replaced in a special election afterward.

DSWSC President Steve Harris (left) and Directors Larry Brewer and Gilbert Wolf resigned a short time before the meeting

The meeting set a record for attendance with an official count of 101 persons attending, however, not all attending signed in for membership records. It was rumored that the Proxy count was also a record, though no official count was given. However, it was rumored that the supporters of the recall petition had a sizable advantage in the proxies submitted.

The Church fellowship hall had all seats filled and people were standing on the sides. The largest crowd prior to this had been about 45 people. The meeting began with an invocation and then it was announced that three directors had submitted their resignations. Director/ President, Steve Harris, Director Larry Brewer, and Director/ Secretary Treasurer, Gilbert Wolf had all resigned.

The resignations caused significant changes in the topics to be covered by the meeting. Corporation Attorney Phil Hagg explained to the membership that since the Directors had resigned, there would not be a recall vote as that had become a mute point. Further, there would not be an election to name new officers, as the bylaws require that officers lost by resignation had to be replaced by appointment by the remaining directors. Directors Travis Garnett and Jim Walden were the only members of the board that remained.

The crowd was tense and asked spirited questions of the attorney until the crowd was satisfied that the process was the correct legal process. However, there was still concern among the members as to who would be appointed. As the process unfolded, it became evident that there were three vacancies to be filled, and there were three candidates who were running to replace the directors. The crowd quickly caught on that all three candidates were going to be appointed by the remaining board members to fill the three vacancies. Therefore, there really was no need for an election anyway.

The members asked that the candidates speak about their qualifications and experience. The new board, showing it’s flexibility and sensitivity to the member’s desires, allowed the candidates to address the members.

Ms. Margaret Foster spoke first, and she explained her background as a CPA and corporate owner and her experience in other board positions. Mr. Greg Perrin spoke next, and told of his leadership on another water irrigation district and other community services. Finally, Mr. Ron Kelly spoke of his experience as HOA board president, FBI agent and head of security services for a major national company. The candidates all had very impressive credentials and the crowd became increasingly favorable to the process.

Director Travis Garnett, a Hays County native
(born 1926), received a standing ovation

Director Walden moved to nominate these three candidates for the three vacant director positions. Then both he and Mr. Garnett voted to add them to the board. With the new directors at the table, the board then elected officers: Mr. Kelly as President, Ms Foster as Sec/Treasurer, with Mr. Garnett remaining as Vice President. Mr. Garnett then began a speech concerning community service and the men who had “made” Dripping Springs what it is today.

One member began to disrupt his speech demanding to know why he was rambling on about this. The crowd reacted quickly and this dissent was silenced when the new President stated that “out of respect for Mr. Garnett’s 30 years of service, he would be allowed to continue to speak.”

At the end of his speech, Mr. Garnett was rewarded with a standing ovation. The meeting then adjourned with the crowd generally pleased with the results and the feeling that the ordeal at the Water Supply Company had come to an end. The crowd generally seemed to feel that the new board members would be able to straighten out the situation.