Displaying items by tag: ethics

Toward the end of Tuesday’s City Council meeting, Commissioner Mathiesen led a discussion on the subject of a ‘Response to Mayor Yepsen's Open Letter to the Citizens of Saratoga Springs,’ which appeared in our pages on April 22, and was written in response to our cover story (“Recusal or Refusal”) of April 15. The full recording of the meeting is archived on the city website (www.saratoga-springs.org). While final decisions from the City’s Ethics Board, on several inquiries related to this subject, are still pending (some have been filed over three months ago!), some things need to be made clear now. 

In Tuesday’s discussion, the Mayor repeated her claim that she was somehow treated unfairly. But, in my opinion, Saratoga TODAY was more than fair in affording the Mayor an entire page to respond, and this was the fairest vehicle we could extend, given the extremely tight timeframe. During Tuesday’s discussion, the Mayor indicated that she submitted facts to the Ethics Board that the Commissioners and this newspaper’s readers were not privy to. The Mayor had an opportunity to put these facts in her open letter, but chose not to. 

Eventually, I would like to write a piece that might propose some positive outcomes regarding this ethics controversy – for all concerned. We will continue to try to advance the discussion, while leaving you to draw your own conclusions. One final thing: I reiterate that I stand 100 percent behind our April 15 story.