Ashland Board of Health members continue their dispute concerning the steps needed for them to get along. Some believe mediation is needed to resolve differences, while others think it would be better to schedule a retreat to discuss the issues in question.

An emergency meeting was recently held, but the agenda did not include the dispute issue. The purpose of the recent meeting was to assist a resident with her septic system permits after a previous meeting had been cancelled due to lack of participation. The matter was resolved, but was just a small part of the overall discussions.

However, despite not being slated for discussion, the majority of time in the meeting was spent debating the issue and at times the conversation became heated. At one point, one member accused the chairman of not including the retreat on the agenda and he asked that it be put on every agenda until the matter is resolved. This did not occur. The two men traded remarks, including accusations one was a liar, and a third member then interrupted and asked them to act like adults.

Eventually, the board split three to two on its decision to mediate. Three wanted to work with a mediator who would meet individually with members and facilitate a public meeting. Two others wanted a retreat scheduled and one stated he’s uncomfortable speaking to a mediator because he’s not sure his remarks will be kept in confidence and not subject to a public records request. The other mediation dissenter feels using mediation would violate Open Meetings laws.