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t August’s Town Board Meeting, an Oriental citizen was put forward as a new member of Oriental’s board of adjustment. Roger Huth was recommended by Adjustment Board Chairman Joe Valinoti. The town board voted 3-2 to deny Huth’s membership on the adjustment board.

An Oriental town board not voting to approve a member of an auxiliary board appears to be without similar precedent. Joe Valinoti writes in :

Dear Editor,

These are some of my thoughts concerning the recent destructive event at the last Oriental town meeting:

This is in reference to the voting by Commissioners Roe, Crosser and Price.

- Apparently, it’s more important to be vindictive then help the town of Oriental
- To the best of my knowledge, never has an applicant been denied a seat on a board unless they were ineligible (such as not living within the town limits).
- Someone who is willing to donate his or her time to work for the town at least deserves to know why they were denied the opportunity.
- This is a new low in governing from those same 3 members of the governing body who, in the past have shown a complete disregard for several hard working employees, causing them to leave.
-  I hope voters will remember who caused the uproar at the next election cycle and vote them out.
- Instead of filling the vacancy they’ve chosen to create more disharmony in Oriental by allowing personal prejudice to influence their decisions.

I find this to be reprehensible conduct on behalf of elected officials.

Joe Valinoti
Oriental, NC
August 19, 2024

There is another view. From Butch Rasmussen:

To the editor. In response to Mr. Valinoti,

Mr Valinoti it is important to attend the town board meetings, so you can know fact from fiction. It seems it would have been appropriate for you to be there for the voting on candidates to your board. There was no destructive event at the last board meeting by any stretch of the imagination, though you may see it that way. No one voted to be vindictive, fiction on your part. No, it is incorrect that Roger Huth is the first to be voted to be rejected to join a volunteer committee. Jennifer Roe has been rejected twice, though eminently qualified.  Alas, had you been a citizen concerned enough to attend town meetings you would know why Mr Huth was rejected, and it was for good reason to anyone who regularly attends town meetings. Mr. Huth’s conduct before the board on several occasions was deplorable, hateful, unjustified and without a basis set on facts. His actions before the board and your recent writings are what is destructive and contributing to the ongoing discord in town. So Mr. Valinoti make the effort to attend the town board meetings and please try to keep your misinformation and innuendo to a minimum. Show some appreciation and respect to the town commissioners for the hard work they do and time spent. Most have been willing to get down in the weeds literally, to better our town.

Butch Rasmussen
Oriental, NC.
August 22, 2024