Chris Bessler and Steve Garvin join Tari Pardini as new appointments
By Ben Olson
Reader Staff
The monthly Panida Board of Directors meeting July 7 saw three new, but familiar, faces join the board, while another member resigned as shakeups continued for the historic theater.
Sean Behm stepped down from his position as chair, but remained on the board as a director, leaving Amy Flint to accept a nomination as the new leader of the board.
Along with the resignations of former-Executive Director Heather White, Board Directors Woody Sherwood and Rory Creigh effective mid-June, Flint said that Charlotte Solly also tendered her resignation effective June 22.
The vacant positions were filled by three names familiar to the theater: Chris Bessler as board secretary, Steve Garvin as vice chair and Tari Pardini as board treasurer. All three are longtime locals and have been involved in the Panida in various capacities over the years.
Flint accepted a motion to accept the resignations and new appointments in a batch.
“As many of you know, each of these individuals have a strong history with the Panida and considerable experience in the nonprofit sector as well,” Flint said.
Flint read a statement that addressed electrical issues brought up by former E.D. White that ultimately led to the wave of resignations after the June 4 meeting.
“The life safety concern identified at the previous board meeting was a false alarm,” Flint said. “The theater closure and related loss of vending were not necessary. However, in the interest of staff, public and theater safety, it was prudent to temporarily close the theater until those perceived issues were researched and resolved.”
Flint said the board is working to maintain “stability and responsible management during this time of transition,” and that rather than quickly hiring another E.D., the board will instead examine the current organizational structure.
White attended the meeting as a member of the public, and during the open comment portion again addressed electrical issues, claiming that the Panida’s assertion that inspectors didn’t find any “life safety issues or danger to staff or patrons” to be a “falsely represented” statement.
“I strongly advise rectifying these issues immediately,” White said.
After the board took public comment, Behm gave an explanation of an electrical report of the facility that White claimed presented a danger to the facility’s patrons. Behm said the report from 2023 was a comprehensive document meant to address issues and repairs that the historic building should consider.
“The KWR report was a long-term planning document that was not an immediate life safety report,” Behm said.
Board Director Dan Thompson shared that three building inspectors came through on June 9 to examine the building and reported that “nothing was egregious and alarming to them.”
Thompson continued, “There will be a report on that which will be sent to OSHA, I believe, because we’ve been turned into OSHA is what I understand.”
Asked later for clarification on the OSHA complaint dated June 27, Flint told the Reader, “There was a complaint related to the electrical concerns. We have addressed it and our final step will be to provide the documentation from the most recent repair work that was done. It’s under control.”
“We passed infrared inspections, we passed two state electrical inspections today,” Behm added. “Everything’s been corrected that’s been brought up.”
White and a few other members of the public again pressed the board on perceived safety concerns, leading to Pardini calling for a point of order and the board moving to adjourn the meeting.
