Bainbridge Council Still Unpledged to Saying the Pledge (Washington State)

By Rachel Pritchett

rpritchett@kitsapsun.com

BAINBRIDGE ISLAND

After being handed a decision on whether the Bainbridge Island City Council would precede meetings by saying the Pledge of Allegiance, the council exercised a bit of freedom — and sent the decision back to Mayor Darlene Kordonowy.

Not that the issue is settled just yet.

The mayor, in face of e-mail criticism that followed her order to council members to make the call, said she will make a statement at a Wednesday meeting in response. Kordonowy said she'll announce that if the members want the pledge on the agenda — and that's her preference — then put it there.

"If this is at all contributing to the lack of cooperation and distrust in the mayor, I want to take it off the table," Kordonowy said Monday.

The pledge has never been regularly recited at Bainbridge Island City Council meetings, but became an issue when one councilman, Vietnam veteran Bill Knobloch, thought it would appropriate and began campaigning for it around the Fourth of July of last year.

Responding to Knobloch's pressure, Kordonowy has led the pledge on and off over the past year. But resentment grew among the other council members, who believed Kordonowy was overstepping her role by forcing them to say the pledge when it wasn't on the agenda.

The discussion exploded last fall when a spat of e-mails among council members captured national media attention and continues to twist in the wind after another round of e-mail, which was released late last week after a public records request by The Kitsap Sun.

In a June 22 e-mail sent just before she left for vacation, Kordonowy directed council Chair Chris Snow to settle the issue with his council colleagues by July 5, when she returned from a vacation.

"I disappoint and frustrate council members when I forget to stand for the pledge and bitterness and resentment are expressed when I remember to stand for the pledge," she wrote.

But council members didn't take it up when she was gone; some deeply resented her placing the onus on them.

In an e-mail that same day from Councilman Kjell Stoknes to Kordonowy, he stated, "Darlene, this appears to be very manipulative and self-serving. I am disappointed in how destructively you have handled this."

And to Snow he wrote, "Chris, very clever. She leaves and asks council to self implode from their own stupidity! Let's consider the fallout before we do this."

He apologized the next day to the mayor for letting "my inner child take control."

Councilman Bob Scales also appeared angry at the mayor for tossing the hot potato to them. In a June 23 message to Kordonowy, Scales wrote, "You must accept the consequences of your actions and you should not expect to be able to pass the buck to the council while you are gone."

He suggested she perhaps talk to council members individually and solve the problem. "You are not a helpless pawn in this matter. You are the Queen," he wrote.

A public records request did not yield evidence of any responses from Kordonowy to the council as of July 5, the day she returned from vacation.

Councilman Jim Llewellyn has fought over the past year for council members just to say the pledge at meetings close to national holidays like the Fourth and Memorial Day.

On Monday, Snow admitted the subject "touches deep emotional nerves." He said he recognized a public council debate of the pledge would be "unproductive" and hopes it's resolved privately. Or not at all.

"Sometimes it's better to let things died down and go away," he said.

If you would like to send a big, hearty THANK YOU!! to Councilman Bill Knobloch, you may do so here:

Bill Knobloch Council Member Bainbridge Island - City of Bainbridge Island


	Bill Knobloch Central Ward, 12/31/2007 Mr. Knobloch was elected to serve on the council in 2002. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in History from Fordham University and and is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Flight School. He headed several Naval operation department positions before his selection as Commanding Officer of a Carrier Air Wing squadron. Upon retiring from the U.S. Navy, he was licensed as a commercial airline pilot, and captained jumbo passenger jets, flying national and international routes. He is an advocate for careful assessment and management of issues that directly affect the environment and residents' quality of life. A fiscal conservative, he supports positive, long term planning for our natural assets and recognizes that the city has limited resources for growth infrastructure. He and his wife, Liz, enjoy boating and travel. Committee Involvement Community Relations (Chair) Public Works & Transportation Contact Information Tel: (206) 855-8888 Email

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