Extra officer will be on hand Tuesday, police chief says, when second and final vote expected on telecommunications regulations
By Morgan Rothborne, Ashland.news
An anonymous individual or individuals sent a threatening email to Ashland City Council and Mayor Tonya Graham Wednesday afternoon with a “demand that you declare a moratorium” on a telecommunication ordinance up for a second and final vote Tuesday.
In the email, obtained by Ashland.news, the authors identified themselves only as “The People,” and wrote to councilors any action but a moratorium would be “ill-advised.”
The email reads, in part: “We, the many deeply concerned people of Ashland, demand that you declare a moratorium on the telecommunication ordinance/resolution approval process and delay the April 2 vote … You will hear on April 2 what courses of action some people may currently feel compelled to take should you choose not support us. You were presented with an Advisory at the last meeting that spoke to the core issues for us and what personal liability you may be vulnerable to. We are the people you swore to protect, and who better than we to tell you what that means.”
The council voted 5 to 1 on Tuesday, March 19, to approve the first reading of the telecommunications ordinance. Councilor Gina DuQuenne voted in opposition while Councilors Jeff Dahle, Dylan Bloom, Paula Hyatt, Eric Hansen and Bob Kaplan voted in favor. The ordinance was expected to be up for a second reading and final vote during the April 2 council business meeting.
In the Wednesday email, the author or authors told councilors they are “men and women of conscience with free will” who should not repeat statements “that your hands are tied” by federal law in regards to 5G technology and the ordinance.
Reached by phone Thursday morning, Ashland Police Chief Tighe O’Meara stated that there will be an additional officer at the upcoming meeting Tuesday in reaction to the way this topic has shown itself to be a “volatile subject.” But O’Meara said he believed the threat in the email and the “advisory” it referenced was simply referring to some kind of recall process.
During the public comment period at the Tuesday, March 19, meeting, one person during public comment stated the ordinance could be a trigger to recall city councilors or fire the city attorney.
“As long as people obey the rules, they’re free to say whatever they want and engage in any kind of democratic process,” O’Meara said.
No response was immediately received to an Ashland.news email sent to the email address on the anonymous email sent to councilors. The same email address has been used in at least one public comment on record in connection with a prior application regarding a cell tower proposal in Ashland.
Email Ashland.news reporter Morgan Rothborne at morganr@ashland.news.
March 29: Day of second and final vote on proposed ordinance corrected to say Tuesday, not Monday.
