Hagwood elected new chair of the board; McGowan defends remarks he made last week

By Debra Moore

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The open session of the meeting took less than 10 minutes, but it was plenty of time to elect a new chair of the board, approve a contract, and hear a statement by one of the supervisors.

During the Plumas County Board of Supervisors special meeting July 25, the board elected Greg Hagwood to serve as chairman of the board for the remainder of the year succeeding Dwight Ceresola who is taking a break from the duties due to medical reasons. Ceresola agreed to serve as vice chair, the position that had been held by Hagwood.

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The board also approved an agreement with Northern California Emergency Medical Services without discussion. This is a continuation of the relationship that provides emergency medical services for the county.

Before the board moved into closed session, District 3 Supervisor Tom McGowan said he was making a brief statement to his fellow board members, the audience in the room and those watching the proceedings on Zoom. “I care deeply about the welfare of Plumas County,” he began. He then announced that he would continue to ask questions respectfully during meetings and expected a respectful answer in return. In referring to some statements that he made during the July 18 board meeting, when the board was considering adding $300,000 to an existing contract, he said, “If the words I used were offensive, that was not my intent.” In those remarks he used the term “catching up” in referring to why extra help was needed in some of the county departments including the auditor and treasurer offices. Auditor Martee Graham objected to the phrase, saying it had negative connotations.

McGowan, summed up his remarks saying, “I’m sure that better days are ahead for Plumas County.”

One other individual also spoke up during the meeting — Clint Koble, an advisor with the Sierra Small Business Development Center. He described the pain that local businesses have felt as a result of the pandemic and fires, and he said he wanted to applaud the Board of Supervisors for providing assistance to those businesses with its grant program.

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