Still two seats to fill on Gunstock Area Commission

GILFORD — Gunstock Mountain Resort's management has recently been in a state of turmoil. The Gunstock Area Commission, the mountain's five-member board, has seen more than its fair share of turnover, causing many appointments outside the commission's normal schedule.

The GAC owes its existence to the 1959 Gunstock Enabling Statute, which sets out the basic requirements, compensation and powers of the commission. After this year’s tumultuous events, some think that those requirements and rules need a rework, while others say it should stay the same. Before checking the pulse on the topic, it’s best to review the basic rules of the 1959 statute, which has been amended over the years.

In short, all five members of the GAC are appointed by the Belknap County Delegation. Each member must be a resident of Belknap County. At least one member has to be an experienced skier and at least one member has to be experienced in finance, banking or accounting. The statute does not specify how many years someone has to have on the slopes or in finance to qualify as “experienced.” Instead, it falls on the county delegation to pick the best commissioners via a job interview-style process, where prospective members submit their resumes and answer questions about their professional history.

After being selected, each member’s term is five years long, but there’s a catch. When the statute was initially signed, it started off with a staggered set of terms, meaning one member had a five-year term, another had four years, another had three, another had two, and the final member had just a one-year term. This means that there will never be a year where multiple commission members' terms end, allowing continuity and one new appointment at a time.

Currently, there are three commissioners, Jade Wood, Doug Lambert, and recently-appointed Denise Conroy. This leaves two seats for the delegation to fill. 

Former commissioner Brian Gallagher said he thinks the more variety in skills among commission members, the better.

“I think the ideal qualifications for a person is to have some background in the ski industry, coupled with having some background in either finance, legal field, and or the marketing area,” Gallagher said. “The reason being is when I sat on the commission, we had a diverse group of folks that brought different skill sets. With those different skill sets we had a strong commission. It’s important to have a diversity of skills.”

Former representative and Belknap resident Kate Miller said she thought the current requirements were adequate. “I think when you narrowly define the requirements, then you diminish your pool of potential commissioners,” Miller said. “I think it’s important to have those two areas of expertise covered, but up until now, generally people who wanted to be commissioners were people who wanted the best for Gunstock, and I think that would be an adequate requirement.”

“Based on the results Monday night, I think the system works,” said County Commission Chair Peter Spanos. “It saved Gunstock from the brink and I think we have a very strong core of three commissioners on the GAC, which is a quorum. I expect them to execute their duties and assist [Tom] Day and the management of Gunstock and I expect a fourth and fifth to be appointed.” 

However, some believe the delegation should no longer have a say in who gets to be a commissioner, especially in light of recent controversy. Instead, that choice should be left up to the citizens of Belknap County.

“When it comes to anything that I might change to the Gunstock appointments, I truly think they should be elected by the people, and that’s what I’m going to work on if I become state rep. again,” said Rep. Travis O’Hara, who serves Belmont and Laconia.

During the last legislative session, state Sen. Bob Guida attached a measure to HB 1397 that would have made the GAC seats directly elected positions.

The measure managed to pass the Senate, but died in the House.

“I think we need to go back to that amended bill and look at having the citizens of Belknap County vote for these positions,” said Rep. Mike Bordes of Laconia.

“I was in favor of that,” Gallagher said, in reference to having GAC members elected by voters.

"That process currently exists in Belknap County, including of county commissioners, the register of deeds and the county attorney, where the public is basically saying, ‘this person has put themselves out for the positions, they need to explain their qualifications and then we as voters select the person'," Gallagher continued. “So we pick someone the most qualified who will represent the interests of Belknap County and Gunstock Resort.”

“Up until this delegation, the process had been working pretty smoothly,” Miller said. “I think this overreach by certain members of this delegation is where the problem lies, not the process.”

Others think that instead of changing the law, the delegation should be more conscious about their choices and avoid playing favorites with personal friends or political affiliations.

“I think when we're appointing commissioners in the future, we have to be certain that none of them belong to any kind of a clique on either end of the spectrum,” Rep. Harry Bean said Monday, after swearing in Denise Conroy to the GAC during the emergency meeting called by a quorum of the county delegation. “People have to be qualified, they have to be mid-stream in my opinion. That’s who I’m going to vote for.”

As far as the GAC’s powers are concerned, it’s best to think of them as similar to a board of directors for a company. The day-to-day operations of running the mountain falls onto the shoulders of the management team. The GAC sets major goals for the organization, then works with management to execute that vision. Where the GAC’s authority ends and begins in regard to daily operations lies at the heart of this year’s controversy.

Earlier this year, Rep. Norm Silber, serving Gilford and Meredith, sponsored legislation to amend the 1959 enabling statute and modify how that power is distributed. HB 1078 would have required the GAC to come up with a budget that was approved by the delegation, which would have greatly increased the delegation’s direct control over the mountain.

The measure failed, and people such as former Commissioner Gary Kiedaisch allege that Silber has attempted to exact his and the delegation’s control of the mountain by appointing commissioners politically or personally close to him.

“Silber made it very clear to me in a meeting in front of Peter [Spanos] and Brian [Gallagher], he announced that he controlled 13 to 14 delegates and that Brian would not be reappointed,” Kiedaisch said. “He referred to me, and said ‘you will have no power and I will control the GAC'.”

After former Commissioners Rusty McLear, Gallagher and Russ Dumais left their positions, Wood, David Strang, and Lambert were appointed to the GAC, with Chair Peter Ness and Kiedaisch remaining as the only experienced commissioners.

Strang, Wood, and Lambert are all members of the Belknap County Republican Committee, an organization chaired by Silber, who has publicly expressed his opinion that Gunstock should be leased out to a private company. Ness allegedly was a personal friend of Silber.

The recent turnover of seats on the commission happened two weeks ago, when the mountain’s entire management team tendered their resignations, stating they would return only if commissioners Ness and Strang resigned. Kiedaisch resigned from the commission at the same time as the management team. Operations on the mountain ground to a halt as employees stood in solidarity with management. After weeks of turmoil, Ness resigned, and a quorum of the county delegation met in an emergency session Monday to accept the resignation of Strang, and to appoint Conroy to the commission.

The five-member group requires at least three members in order to have a quorum. After publicly conducting interviews with candidates during Monday's emergency meeting, the County Delegation chose Conroy, a former chief executive officer and chief financial officer with a high caliber resume. Conroy’s appointment fulfills the remainder of Kiedaisch’s term, ending in November of 2023.

As of this week, the GAC has someone with an extensive financial background in Conroy, while commissioners Lambert and Wood are both experienced skiers, so the basic requirements of commission membership, with the exception of having all five members, seem to be fulfilled. In theory, the next two appointees could have no experience in skiing or finance.

Strang's and Ness' resignations came after calls from the public, and county and state officials. Lambert and Wood have focused on efforts to get the management team back in order to restore activities at the resort.

“I’m very grateful to the public for becoming involved in the restoration of Gunstock's operations,” Spanos said. “It wouldn't have happened so quickly without the public outcry." He continued, "It’s just an example of the power of the people when they can unite for a common, just, cause and that’s precisely what they did.”