Doug Adler's post earlier today misses a number of key points:
1. Doug, Pam, the dozens who have commented on the event and myself
were not present at Dar's termination. We are not
in a position to know the facts about this termination. Unfortunately,
we are also not in a position to get both sides of the story.
2. It is illegal for anyone but Dar to talk about it. Dar is the only
person with legal recourse if there was an unfair firing. The board is
entirely correct in remaining silent on the matter. This silence is
designed to protect Dar more than anyone else.
3. On the matter of the board election, let me suggest Mr. Adler review
my earlier comments on the election.
Having helped hire Dar and having worked directly with her for several
years, there is no doubt the she worked tirelessly on behalf of BFW.
She has exceptional organizational and analytical talent plus an
excellent work ethic. I have never observed or even heard of any
ethical lapses on her part. She has worked hard on improving her own
performance, and I believe that she is capable of making great
contributions to the lot of cyclists or to any organization who hires
her. Her strategic analysis presented to the board last year remains a
sound blueprint for the future - one of many aspects about her
contributions to the Bike Fed about which I am thankful and about which
she should be proud.
Unfortunately, three years ago, signs began to appear that the financial
prospects for the Bike Fed were heading in the wrong direction. The
problems were caused principally by a lack of new contracts. Dar did an
excellent job controlling expenses, but at some point, BFW had to earn
enough new business. New contracts in Madison and Dane County virtually
disappeared 2 years ago. The red lights really started flashing for me
in June, 2006, when I saw projected revenues expected to decline by over
28% for 2006 from 2005. In spite of comments in http://bethenengine.com
about the poor state of the economy, evidence through last year
suggests that Wisconsin's economy had been growing steadily since 2003.
What's more, cycling has earned growing favor as a natural part of the
solution to a host of our nation's key problems - traffic/urban sprawl,
global warming, school costs and obesity. For the first time in
history, bicycles have received significant political support from both
major political parties and the bicycle industry itself, which actually
support real, honest-to-God advocacy. I could not and I do not accept
the idea that revenues
should be falling or that they should have fallen a year ago. The fact
that new contracts have grown dramatically since Jack Hirt has taken
over provides evidence that of the potential for the organization to
grow dramatically.
My views about BFW's problems naturally created a conflict with Dar.
When it became clear to me that my conflict with Dar might be hurting
her performance, I resigned as President and from my position on the
board.
Edith Merila was elected president of the board for a number of
reasons. Perhaps the most important reason was that she was one of
Dar's strongest supporters on the board. For those of you who may not
be familiar with Edith: She's a Madison area cyclist and long-time
attorney (specializing in public interest law) who
worked closely with Dar on the issues surrounding to access to roads in
western Dane County. While helping to reduce the overall tension
between town officials and cyclists, she also helped prevent a
significant trampling of cyclists rights. All of this was time
volunteered on behalf of cyclists throughout the state but principally
in Dane County. Dar was the one who actually suggested Edith as a board
candidate. She also worked on the finance committee, the executive
committee and provided advice on other legal affairs. Edith had and has
my full support.
By now, it's general knowledge that the Bike Fed had a financial
crisis. This crisis was caused by the failure of expected contracts to
receive final approval. Edith, as Board President, had the authority
and the obligation to oversee the day-to-day affairs of BFW - especially
if the financial condition deteriorated enough. The by-laws at the time
How it turned into a termination is between Dar and the Bike
Fed board, and is confidential information. The Bike Fed is legally
obligated to protect Dar's privacy and reputation. As a result, it
cannot respond to Pam's question, "why the termination was carried out
in such a vicious and heartless manner", or whether the termination
was "vicious or heartless" in the first place. Nothing in any board
member's experience, matches the pain of terminating an executive
director - especially when you have so consistently supported them in
the past.
Second-guessing this decision serves no one - not Dar, not the Bike Fed,
not the people across the state who are counting on the Bike Fed to make
conditions better for cyclists throughout Wisconsin. Continuing to
create a divisive atmosphere within our community makes it easier for
outsiders to undermine the Bike Fed's efforts to bring about better
state funding of cycling projects, to improve treatment of cyclists by
local officials, to integrate cycling considerations in driver education
and to provide services to cities around the state, to name but a few of
major initiatives. I'm sure that members road lobby would love to
hear about infighting within the Bike Fed. For a legislator
looking for excuses not to give money to cycling, having an organization
in turmoil is great news.
It is long past time for those of us concerned with the movement to move
on. The organization has been moving forward quite successfully toward
not just recovery but toward a future that may well exceed my most
optimistic hopes.
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