Kurtz calls for kinder New Year in Paris

PARIS — Selectman Ted Kurtz chided himself and other board members for allowing negativity to infuse the dealings of the board, and called for a renewed effort to be proactive during 2011.

"The end of the year frequently brings on moments of reflection with a resolve to do things better in the future," said Kurtz, reading from a written statement. "They call it New Year's resolutions."

Kurtz said that he and his colleagues needed to do more to foster a positive work environment.

"Looking back to early March of this year, I am struck by the amount of negative energy this board has expended as a group and as individual members, and I include myself in this," said Kurtz. "My hope for the board is that we become more proactive and less reactive."

Kurtz made three specific suggestions, including coming to an agreed-upon stance as to "the fullness, completeness, and accuracy with which items are presented to the board ... What is the standard?"

A second suggestion from Kurtz was to come to agreement about whether dealings between the board and town employees should be conducted more publicly, or less publicly.

"Is openness in this regard, or is silence in this regard, in the best interests of the town?" he asked. "Are some topics off-limits? We need to set the rules."

Finally, he added in a concern that had been raised by a citizen earlier in the evening.

"What does the town office do with a request from a person who is seeking a legal opinion about something that they feel the answer to this question would be pertinent to town affairs?" asked Kurtz.

Kurtz said that, only by establishing clear rules, could future disagreements be fairly adjudicated.

"I'm saying, let's be proactive, and let's set up the rules in advance," he said.

Reading from another written statement, Kurtz also defended himself against allegations that he had violated the privacy rights of Town Manager Phil Tarr.

Tarr leveled the accusation at Kurtz, after Kurtz circulated an email to other board members that Tarr felt violated his right to privacy. The email contained a request for an item to be placed on the board's meeting agenda, as well as information that Tarr considered to be personal.

Emails between town officials related to town affairs, such as a meeting agenda, are generally considered to be public documents.

"It was said that the content was confidential, and that the mere transmittal of the email made it subject to inspection by the public," said Kurtz. "If the message in question had contained confidential information, which it did not, then it should not have been available to the public."

Kurtz said that the only way to violate privacy concerns would be to actually leak private information to the public.

"If a member of the public asked to see the medical records of an employee, that request would and should be denied," said Kurtz. "It's making it public that makes it public."