BLAND — Following questions raised during the Aug. 10 Board of Aldermen meeting, Bland City Clerk Tessa Koch and City Treasurer Karen Dittman sat down with The Maries County Advocate to provide additional context about resident Jordan Durbin’s previous removal from a city gathering and explain how complaints are handled by employees.

Durbin’s removal had become one of several issues he raised with aldermen on Aug. 10, when he questioned whether residents were being discouraged from voicing concerns at public meetings.

Koch and Dittman said the incident occurred July 24 during a town hall meeting concerning the local use tax that was being placed on the ballot, rather than during a regular board meeting.

According to Koch, Durbin came to the meeting following a dispute involving a neighbor and attempted to discuss that situation.

Koch said Durbin was told more than once that the meeting was specifically intended to discuss the proposed use tax and that his concerns could instead be placed on the agenda for an upcoming August board meeting.

“We told him he could be put on the agenda for our meeting that was coming up, and he was put on the agenda for the meeting that came, and he got to be heard,” Dittman said.

Another issue developed that evening when Durbin attempted to pay his water bill during the July town hall meeting.

Koch said City Hall normally closes at 4 p.m. and employees were not conducting regular city business during the meeting.

“We don’t conduct business during public meetings,” Koch said.

Although Koch said she has occasionally accepted a water payment during a meeting, her register and computer were already shut down that evening.

According to Koch, Durbin became upset and began talking over others and speaking out of turn.

The discussion also turned to allegations involving a neighbor and an alleged private conversation between Durbin and Mayor Merrilee Spurgeon.

Koch said the allegation involved a suggestion that another person would not receive citations because of that person’s connection to the fire department. She said Spurgeon disputed that characterization.

“Nobody gets special treatment,” Koch said.

Dittman said Durbin was not the only person warned about his behavior during the meeting.

Another audience member, whom Dittman identified as the husband of an alderwoman, also became loud.

“He was also told to settle down, be quiet, or he would be removed,” Dittman said.

Both employees said the police officer present during the meeting, Bland Officer Joseph Pohlmann, acted professionally and attempted to calm the situation before Durbin was removed.

“He didn’t want to take anyone. He didn’t want to arrest anyone,” Dittman said. “He wanted everybody to chill out.”

Koch said the situation eventually reached the point where Durbin was told it was time to leave.

“He escorted him out without incident, and that was the end of it,” Koch said.

Dittman said Pohlmann then remained outside and spoke with Durbin for some time.

Both Koch and Dittman said the incident was the first time they had personally witnessed someone being removed from a city meeting.

Durbin questioned during the Aug. 10 Board of Aldermen meeting whether other residents had previously been removed from meetings. Koch said the previous incidents being discussed appeared to involve other circumstances rather than removals from board meetings.

“I’ve never witnessed anybody have to be removed from any of our meetings,” Koch said.

Dittman said one incident Durbin may have been referring to involved a woman being told to leave City Hall during normal business rather than during a meeting or court proceeding.

Beyond the circumstances of Durbin’s removal, Koch and Dittman said some of the concerns residents bring to City Hall stem from confusion about which employees or departments have authority over particular issues.

Many of the concerns Durbin raised Aug. 10 involved ordinance enforcement, police activity and alleged violations elsewhere in the city.

Dittman said residents sometimes assume the clerk and treasurer have information about individual police or code enforcement matters.

“They are separate,” Dittman said of the police department. “We’re not their secretaries.”

Koch and Dittman can accept a resident’s name, telephone number and complaint and forward the information to the appropriate person, but they do not supervise police officers or direct enforcement activities, nor do they get updates on police cases outside of the monthly city meetings.

“Where it goes from there is on the department, I don’t follow up because I’m not his secretary,” Koch said. “I just do my part.”

Dittman said residents sometimes return to City Hall wanting to know what action was taken.

“We have to tell them, ‘well, we gave them the message,’” she said.

That separation between departments also means city office employees may not know whether another resident has already been warned or cited.

Durbin questioned during the Aug. 10 meeting what he viewed as inconsistent enforcement after observing other properties and vehicles around Bland.

Dittman said seeing a potential violation does not mean enforcement action has not already occurred.

“We don’t have a clue,” Dittman said. “Like Tessa said, we don’t know who they have sent a letter to, sent a warning to. They may have already.”

Koch said she generally learns the broader number of enforcement actions when a police report is presented during city meetings. Those reports include the number of citations written along with letters and citations issued through code enforcement.

Koch and Dittman also provided additional context about another major concern raised during the Aug. 10 meeting — Bland’s streets.

Dittman said city officials are setting aside money for street improvements but residents should understand that the city’s limited revenue means projects cannot happen immediately.

“I think we’re in a better position now than we’ve been in years past,” Dittman said.

Koch said the city is attempting to be proactive.

“But these things don’t happen overnight,” Koch said.

“Grants take years,” Dittman added.

Dittman said there is a tentative plan for where street money should be spent as revenue becomes available.

One area under consideration is a street near the school used by school buses. Dittman said cracks have developed in the street and officials hope to address them before conditions worsen.

She said discussions have also taken place with the city of Belle about potentially using equipment for street maintenance.

“He’s working on it,” Dittman said of the city’s plans. “But like I said, the money we are setting aside, it’s trickling in.”

She described the financial limitation facing the city more plainly.

“Bland is poor,” Dittman said. “I mean, we’re like poor.”

Koch said the size of the community and its relatively small business base affect how quickly additional revenue can be generated.

“It’s a very small community,” Koch said.

“The smaller it is, the more time it takes to generate revenue,” she added. “It’s not a town full of businesses, so that trickles in a lot slower versus a town with 1,500 or more people.”

Both employees said residents frustrated with conditions in Bland can also take a more active role in improving the community.

Dittman used an overgrown yard as an example, saying residents might consider whether a neighbor needs assistance before simply filing a complaint.

“You never know who’s living in that house,” Dittman said. “It could be an elderly woman or an elderly man or a couple that just don’t have, you know, the manpower or the strength to do this.”

She encouraged residents to help their neighbors, watch out for children in the community and support residents who use their own money to improve conditions within the city.

She also encouraged residents to become more involved in city government.

“Come to our meetings,” Dittman said. “Definitely come to our meetings.”

Koch said City Hall is often the first place residents bring concerns, but the clerk and treasurer have limited authority to make policy changes.

“At the end of the day, we’re just the city clerk. We’re just the city treasurer,” Koch said. “We cannot vote.”

Residents seeking changes ultimately need to bring those concerns before their elected representatives, she said.

“If you want change, you have to bring these issues to your aldermen,” Koch said.

Both employees said they believed Durbin’s removal from the July 24 meeting was warranted because public meetings require a certain level of order.

Asked whether she believed the removal was justified, Dittman responded, “Yes.”

“Very much so,” Koch added.

Dittman said that standard was not limited to Durbin.

“Anytime anyone gets out of line…that’s what we got a police officer for,” she said.

Koch and Dittman also rejected the suggestion that city employees have personally singled Durbin out.

“He’s not singled out,” Dittman said. “We all don’t hate him. He comes up here. We’re polite to him.”

Dittman pointed to a recent instance when Durbin’s wife called City Hall because she was having difficulty paying a bill online.

Dittman said she invited her to come into the office so employees could help her determine what was causing the problem.

“No, we’re not out to get them,” Dittman said.

Koch said residents have a right to bring concerns to city officials, but everyone attending a meeting must also allow city business to be conducted.

“There’s just a level of decorum that you have to maintain,” Koch said. “We’re not the bad guys.”

Dittman agreed.

“Being loud isn’t going to get anything accomplished,” Dittman said.

For Dittman, improving Bland ultimately requires more than pointing out problems to city officials.

She pointed to the city’s 250th American Anniversary festival recently held in July as an example of residents coming together.

“It brought the community together,” Dittman said. “Everybody enjoyed themselves, but it doesn’t have to be for just one day.”

Residents will have another opportunity to gather when Bland holds its fall festival in early October.