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Councilin limbo as numbers fall short

The Yankeetown Town Council meeting becomes unruly when a member quits.

By MOISES MENDOZA
Published July 5, 2006

YANKEETOWN -The Monday night Town Council meeting devolved into a shouting match as council member Mary Pate resigned and the council was once more unable to reach a quorum.

Now, residents are once again asking: Will the state take over?

Town officials have previously said that Gov. Jeb Bush was considering stepping in to deal with the town's problems, which include a council that can't meet quorum, a mayor who's been accused of shredding legal documents and an investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

A letter from the governor's office last week said that if the council couldn't meet its obligations, the state could declare a state of financial emergency and/or appoint members to the council.

It's unclear what steps the governor might take besides those he outlined in the letter.

But the letter's implication was that if the Town Council couldn't conduct its business Monday, more drastic action would be taken.

Mayor Joanne Johannesson said she would speak to the governor today. But, Johannesson added, she didn't know what was going to happen.

"Right now the governor is going to make decisions for the town," Johannesson said. "I'll tell him what happened."

Pate was not present Monday night. She sent in a resignation letter. Once Johannesson announced that quorum could not be reached, the packed Yankeetown Women's Club building erupted with shouting.

Resident Joyce Richards walked to a microphone and read a letter chastising the mayor until a Levy County sheriff's deputy told her to stop.

Other residents milled about the club discussing the future of the town, which fell into turmoil when an out-of-town developer proposed a controversial project on land that fronts the Withlacoochee River. That project remains in the planning stages.

Johannesson said Pate plotted to sabotage the Monday meeting.

"She did not show up knowing full well we would not be able to conduct our business," Johannesson said.

Pate's resignation letter accused the mayor of disrespecting the Town Council and Yankeetown residents.

"I can no longer be part of a governing body that continues to use unethical conduct and political backstabbing for its own goals," Pate wrote.

Moises Mendoza can be reached at mmendoza@sptimes.com or 860-7337.

[Last modified July 4, 2006, 23:17:14]