Editor,

Regarding your article “Oak Harbor leadership cuts down 330-year-old tree in secret plan,” the City of Oak Harbor had absolutely zero need to discuss publicly the decision to cut down this tree.

This was a maintenance issue that needed not be addressed during any public meeting. It was a decision made by the departments responsible. Unless it required an extraordinary amount of money not already budgeted, it never needed to be discussed with city council members.

However, it was discussed with the council members, and they agreed to keep it a secret.

Under the Open Public Meetings Act, every city council member has the choice to agree that a topic should continue to be addressed in executive session, or they can vote to move the issue to the public forum.

Apparently, every council member agreed that this should be kept a secret. Mr. Almberg’s statements are just ridiculous, for the reasons already mentioned and for so much more.

Mayor Dudley’s administration is a most transparent administration. If Mr. Almberg’s good friend, attorney Chris Skinner, didn’t feel it necessary to sue the City of Oak Harbor every time a decision that Mr. Almberg didn’t agree with happened to occur, the number of executive sessions would likely be far fewer.

The people of Oak Harbor, however, handily re-elected Mr. Almberg, and others on the city council, and they are clearly part of a “get Mayor Dudley at all costs” crowd.

You get what you elect: you get historic trees cut down under secret plans.

William Burnett

Oak Harbor