Fired clerk "tired of being yelled at"

Brier Mayor Gary Starks is standing behind his refusal to step down from office, despite the City Council's recent vote of no-confidence due to his reported anger-management problems and significant turnovers in the city staff.

"He's bowed his neck pretty good. I don't think he's gonna back down," said former Mayor Wayne Kaske, who quit 20 months ago. The council appointed Starks to finish Kaske's term, which ends this year.

A raucous crowd of about 70 residents and former employees turned out at last week's City Council meeting to demand that Starks resign — on the spot. They were galvanized by Starks' firing the previous week of Paula Swisher, the city clerk, treasurer and office manager.

Starks remained calm throughout the confrontation, which stretched more than three hours. He called some unspecified accusations "lies," denied he's verbally aggressive with workers and stood behind his staffing decisions.

"I have no intention of resigning my position," he told the crowd. "I'm going to continue to do the best job that I can do."

At full staffing, the city em-

ploys 18 people. Five department heads and several other workers have reportedly been fired by Starks, resigned under pressure from the mayor or quit because of him.

A tearful Swisher lashed out at Starks during the meeting, describing how she had been fired for "insubordination" after she told him to stop shaking his finger in her face.

Starks had called her into his office after he learned she had given eight sets of keys to the Emergency Services Coordinating Agency, which leases the basement of the new City Hall.

"I would like these people to know how you talk to me," she said. "I told him to put his finger away, and I was tired of being yelled at. ... It's time that somebody do something to stop him."

Until recently, Starks had fended off his critics with the backing of a four-man council majority. Two of his defenders — Carlton Gipson and Ed McClenny Jr. — missed last week's drama. But the other two, Gary Morgan and Dale Kaemingk, joined with the mayor's critics for the 5-0 no-confidence vote, which included a demand that Starks quit.

"I was relieved," Councilwoman Sasha Doolittle said. "We have to show that as a council body we are not accepting of his firing of Paula, yelling at constituents, his aggressive and belligerent behavior."

When Starks declined to resign, audience members called out that he should "be a man," lay aside his ego and do what's right for the city.

All five members of the city's park board quit in protest.

"Mayor Starks has created a work environment where the employees just want out of his office — away from his mercurial temper," said former Park Board member Dee Williamson. "He has created a workplace where you keep your head down, your mouth shut and a prayer on your lips that he won't look at you."

Another former park-board member, Ken Overstreet, also quit his paid position as city webmaster.

Starks has said that he intends to run for re-election in the fall. Kaske, council members Morgan and Bob Colinas, and Brier real-estate agent Frank Young have expressed interest in the job.

Diane Brooks: 425-745-7802 or dbrooks@seattletimes.com