Stalemate

HAYDEN — The city of Hayden remains at an impasse for who will be appointed interim mayor.

The Hayden City Council on Tuesday voted to hold a special meeting at 4 p.m., April 4 to sort out details of opening the mayoral search to the public. This was after intense discussion among the Council, as well as a 2-2 vote that went nowhere to appoint past president and longtime Councilman Roger Saterfiel as interim mayor.

Votes in favor came from Saterfiel and Councilman Ed DePriest, who motioned to "move the city forward" by appointing Saterfiel. Votes against came from Council President Matt Roetter and Councilwoman Sandra White. With no mayor to break the tie, the search for interim mayor continues.

White had stepped forward last meeting to potentially be appointed from within. The council did not vote on her appointment as she stated she would be willing to go through an interview process.

"I think it's fair to expect anyone who wants to be mayor to go through the same application process we would expect from anyone else," she said. "Whatever we do, someone new will be coming in. So, we need to make sure that this person meets the needs and the requirements of a mayor. I'm willing to go through the application process rather than put myself forward."

Saterfiel highlighted his experience to support why he would be fit for the job. He was the director of the Kootenai County Solid Waste Department for 12 years and served as operations manager for 20 years. He is in his third year as a council member.

"I believe he would be able to manage the meetings, run the meetings and execute the duties and expectations of a mayor," DePriest said.

DePriest expressed concern about hiring a mayor from outside the council, "who does not have experience on a council or as a mayor. There is a tremendous learning curve."

"We're drinking from a fire hose," he said. "We're just overwhelmed, we aren't sure what we can do, what we can say, how we do what we do. We're always asking for help. I think the mayor needs to be in a position where they're confident that they know what they're doing and how to do it and how to function."

White said she doesn't feel comfortable, based on her observations in the past year, having Saterfiel as mayor. She said he didn't show "real leadership" after submitting an editorial and talking to The Press without first talking to her.

She asked him what his top three priorities are, to which he answered "growth, via the comprehensive plan"; Hayden's low levy tax rate — "I think we need to explore other ways to increase our revenue, if you will, without burdening the taxpayers" — and law enforcement.

"People think Hayden doesn't have crime," Saterfiel said. "Well, yes it does."

Roetter then grilled Saterfiel about a number of issues, past and present, including his support of the "Epiphany" public art sculpture by the Hayden Library, how to pay for growing public safety needs, his thoughts on Hayden's residential growth rate and whether Saterfiel would raise taxes so more people can move to Hayden.

"No," Saterfiel responded to the latter. "I'm never in favor of increasing taxes other than if it's needed to operate the city, which we have done frequently, and it's usually been unanimous among council."

DePriest said "it's good that we do not all think like clones."

"We have the ability to look at the big picture," he said. "Are we all going to get along? Heck no. That's already been seen, you know. And it's good that we all don't get along. There needs to be discussion and debate and the like about just about every issue, for the most part. Otherwise, how can we really represent the variety that's out there in the public?"

The interim mayor will serve until former Mayor Steve Griffitts' term expires. A new mayor will be elected in 2023 and take office in 2024.

The special meeting will be held in the Hayden City Council Chambers at 8930 N. Government Way.