THUMBS DOWN ... To officials from Northfield, Northfield Center, Sagamore Hills and Boston Heights who conducted an unannounced meeting in attorney Jeff Snell's private office Jan. 26 to talk about sharing fire and EMS services. We don't see any good reasons why the gathering, a spinoff of the sometimes controversial fire district talks that have been ongoing since last year, had to be the first to be conducted behind closed doors.
Snell, the organizer of the meeting, did not return several phone calls seeking an explanation. But two attendees, Trustees Richard Barrett and Richard Reville, told us they could not justify the need for secrecy. While they have pledged to conduct future meetings in public, we prefer the response of Northfield Mayor Vic Milani, who said he sat out the meeting because he thought it should have been public.
We hope all future meetings on the subject are open to the public. If a fire district is ultimately born of these talks, officials have said, voters will be asked to approve a levy to pay for it. The public is entitled to hear all the details, as they arise, so they can make a wise decision at the polls.
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