Carroll County Independent
© 2004
AUGUST 19, 2004

Tamworth Planning Board members recuse themselves
By TERRY LEAVITT
Editor
TAMWORTH — Planning board members Thomas Cleveland and Herb Cooper have decided to recuse themselves from taking part in planning board deliberations on the wetlands permit for the Club Motorsports Incorporated’s plan to build a motorsports country club on the side of Mt. Whittier.
The public hearing on the wetland application is set for next Wednesday, Aug. 25, at 7 p.m. at Kenneth A. Brett School, and is actually a continuation of a hearing begun last month. The hearing was postponed in order to give people in surrounding communities a chance to speak on what some regard as a regional issue because of the potential for affecting groundwater. The planning board, in opening up the hearing process to comments from people outside of Tamworth, did not say that they believe the issue to be a regional one, only that it could potentially been seen as such.
Cleveland and Cooper said they would recuse themselves at a court hearing in front of Justice Morrill in Rockingham Superior Court Monday morning. Club Motorsports brought suit seeking an injunction against Cleveland and Cooper, after they refused to recuse themselves at the first planning board hearing in July.
Stephan Condodemetraky, of Club Motorsports, was at the hearing, and was represented by Attorneys Susan Duprey and Thomas Quarles. In court documents, they argued that Cleveland and Cooper should recuse themselves because they had allowed their names to appear on documents in opposition to the project, and that Cleveland had spoken publicly and written letters opposing it.
Cleveland and Cooper hired Attorney Geoffrey J. Ransom, of Concord, to represent them. When the case came before the court, Ransom initially argued for a change of venue for the proceedings. Ransom said because the case involved Tamworth Planning Board members and land in Tamworth, the suit should have been brought in Carroll County rather than in Rockingham County, where Club Motorsports’ offices are located.
Morrill said, “I agree as a matter of principal and I’ll change the venue as soon as this hearing is over.” But, he added, he could hear the case as a Carroll County case, and hear the initial proceedings in Rockingham Superior Court, since all parties were present on that day.
Ransom also argued that the court case is premature because the planning board hearing had not taken place.
The judge noted that Cleveland had already recused himself from Tamworth Conservation Commission deliberations on the same issue and asked asked if Cleveland and Cooper were planning to recuse themselves.
Ransom said, “Without committing my clients, I think that’s a distinct possibility.”
If the pair recuses themselves, the judge said he would be able to dismiss the case.
Cleveland, Cooper and their attorney left the courtroom to discuss the matter.
When they returned, Ransom told the court that his clients would recuse themselves, without agreeing to the arguments presented by Club Motorsports, “and to avoid even the appearance of impropriety.”
The judge dismissed the case without prejudice, meaning that it can be brought up in court again.
Condodemetraky said he was pleased with the resolution, and looked forward to a fair hearing on Aug. 25. But asked why if Cleveland and Cooper intended to recuse themselves, they hadn’t done so sooner.
Duprey agreed, “We’re happy that the judge agreed with us. It shouldn’t have been necessary to drag everybody into court to accomplish something this obvious.”
But Ransom said the proceedings were not unusual, and that his clients had not been ready to recuse themselves earlier.
“People have a right to come to court and contest and many decisions are made on the courthouse steps,” he said. He also said his clients had a right to challenge the suit because it was brought in the wrong court, and because his clients believe some of the allegations in it are wrong.

Correction
As reported in last week’s issue of the Independent, Alexandra Cook, selectmen’s representative to the planning board, has also recused herself on this issue. It was incorrectly reported, however, that she made the decision to recuse herself last Monday. In fact, she recused herself the previous Monday.
No implication that her decision was related to the law suit involving Thomas Cleveland or Herb Cooper was intended.