Citizen Has A Deal For Wayward Councilman Offers To Pay For Today’s Meeting If Anderson Resigns When It’s Over

If Spokane City Councilman Chris Anderson doesn’t want to pay the bill for today’s one-man town hall meeting, taxpayer Stuart Evey says he will.

But Evey wants something in return.

“I will pay whatever costs the city is suggesting it will be…if Chris agrees to resign at the end of his speech,” Evey said.

Anderson plans to hold “A Town Hall Meeting with Chris Anderson: Candid Answers to Candid Questions” in the council chambers at City Hall. The meeting’s purpose is to “dispel some of the pure myth” surrounding his recent absence, he said in a written statement.

“I will make an important announcement…and will respond to questions from the public and the media,” Anderson said.

Evey said he’s tired of watching the council and public waste time wondering what Anderson will do next. He wants the city to focus on issues such as street repair.

“It’s not that I want to get rid of Chris,” he said. “I just want the city to get back on track.”

Anderson has missed 13 council meetings since June 3 when he left to drive a truck on the “Dante’s Peak” movie set in Wallace, Idaho. He then moved with the crew to Los Angeles to finish filming and has refused to say when he will return.

Meanwhile, Anderson continues to cash his $1,500-a-month council paycheck.

Attempts to reach him Friday were unsuccessful.

Council members at first balked at letting Anderson use council chambers at taxpayers’ expense. They decided later to send him a bill, saying he could choose whether residents should have to pay for his one-man town hall meeting.

Acting City Manager Bill Pupo estimates the cost of the event will be $120 to $130, including overtime pay for a security guard and janitor.

Mayor Jack Geraghty said he couldn’t imagine what Anderson might be planning.

“You know…I don’t have a clue,” Geraghty said. “The only time he’s communicated with me was when he said he’d be gone.”

, DataTimes MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: Q&A “Candid Answers to Candid Questions” starts at noon in the council chambers of City Hall, 808 W. Spokane Falls Blvd.