Delegation ‘Has The Votes’ To Remove Strang

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Gunstock Area Commissioners Doug Lambert and Jade Wood attend a special meeting in person while Acting Chair David Strang participates remotely on July 31. (Tom Caldwell Photo)

Gunstock Commissioner Agreed To Resign — But Not Yet

GILFORD — After Dr. David Strang resisted another call for his resignation from the Gunstock Area Commission on July 31, members of the Belknap County Delegation said they plan to call an emergency meeting on August 1 to remove him from the position, and that they “have the votes” to do so.

Dr. Strang, now serving as acting chair in the wake of former chair Peter Ness’ resignation on July 29, called Sunday’s special meeting of the commission in order to deal with “pressing issues,” including a possible lawsuit against the county by New Sound Concerts, the promoter of SoulFest, a Christian music festival that has called Gunstock home since 2004 (with the exception of a pandemic-related cancellation in 2020).

SoulFest is scheduled to open on Thursday, August 4, and run through Saturday, August 6, but many of Gunstock’s amenities, such as a lift to the summit of the mountain and its Adventure Park, are closed as a result of resignations by the senior management of the county-owned recreational area. The threatened lawsuit would be for a breach of contract if Gunstock is unable to provide the attractions that festival-goers have come to appreciate.

Sunday’s meeting agenda included a reinstatement of the management staff. Members of the staff agreed to return to Gunstock if Ness and Strang resigned or were removed from their positions. Ness had initially resisted, but he agreed to step down following a non-public session on Friday.

Commissioner Doug Lambert made the motion to rehire the management team “according to the documents that they signed and submitted.” All three current commissioners — Strang, Lambert, and Jade Wood — voted in favor of the motion, but Strang rescinded his vote after learning that documents included the demand that he resign.

Strang noted that the 1959 enabling legislation that established the Gunstock Area Commission to oversee Gunstock operations requires a minimum of three members.

“That means if any of the remaining commissioners were to resign right now, there would be no quorum and no other functioning commission that would be able to hire anyone to ensure that SoulFest was successfully held this week, and that the mountain can start preparing for this coming winter ski season,” Strang said.

Strang said he would welcome the return of General Manager Tom Day and Facilities Operations Director Pat McGonagle, but Lambert said Day’s return was contingent upon the return of the entire staff, and of Strang’s departure from the commission.

“Despite repeated attempts to talk this through with Tom directly, none of my calls or texts were answered,” Strang said. “I do not have the words to describe how disappointed I am in this refusal to honor their word to ensure that this event happened.”

Amidst boos from the audience attending the meeting at Gunstock’s base lodge, Strang, who was participating remotely, continued, “I think we have all suffered a lot in the last one or two weeks. I continue to extend an olive branch to both Tom and Pat and ask them to work with the commission to make SoulFest a successful event in the coming week. … Let’s apply what we’ve learned from this, focus on tomorrow, and resume our collective efforts to ensure that Gunstock remains the special place that it is.”

After his appointment to the commission earlier this year, Strang worked with McGonagle and the Belknap County Commission to see that $1.3 million in American Rescue Plan Act money is earmarked for an upgrade of Gunstock’s parking lot. However, his work as chair of the commission’s new audit committee helped to turn sentiment against him and the commission as a whole. Many Gunstock supporters see the audit as part of attempt to discredit the work of Gunstock’s management, and Strang’s angry response to their concerns further alienated them, leading to the mass walkout on July 20.

Although Strang withdrew his support for the motion to rehire the staff, the votes by Wood and Lambert affirmed the decision, and Lambert asked for Strang’s immediate resignation. Saying he had spoken with former Attorney-General Joe Foster, Lambert said he had a “potential scenario” where Strang could resign without rendering the Gunstock Area Commission ineffective.

Rep. Gregg Hough (R-Laconia) holds the microphone for Rep. Harry Bean (R-Gilford) as Bean announces that there are enough votes among the Belknap County Delegation to remove Dr. David Strang from the Gunstock Area Commission. (Tom Caldwell Photo)

He called upon Rep. Harry Bean, R-Gilford, to explain “how they can help us solve this problem.”

Bean, saying that Strang is a personal friend, nevertheless called for his resignation. He said the delegation can make a temporary appointment to maintain a functioning board.

“In light of the fact that the votes are there for his removal, if necessary, we are tasked with what’s right for the people of Belknap County and getting Gunstock reopened quickly,” Bean said. “We have the votes to call for an emergency meeting of the county delegation to remedy this situation and reopen the mountain immediately. I’d like to say that this is possible through the efforts of the majority of the delegation, not just Rep. [Gregg] Hough and myself.”

Early last May, in order to address a popular misconception that the all-Republican Belknap County Delegation was looking to shut down, sell, or lease Gunstock, Bean had sponsored a pledge, signed by 17 of the 18 county representatives, to never support the privatization of Gunstock. Some of those signing the pledge said they might support leasing a portion of the property to a private firm if, for instance, Gunstock’s leadership wanted to allow someone to operate a hotel, as suggested in a draft master plan for the resort.

Lambert said it was important to get the management team back in place this week.

“The stark reality is that, if we don’t do this and get that team here at this time, even if SoulFest does happen, and it happens without the use of the zip [line], the chairlift, the aerial treetops, and the mountain coaster, the attorney has indicated … that they will still move forward with suits, claiming that the lack of these activities directly impacts their ticket sales … and they intend to hold Gunstock Mountain, and by definition, the Belknap County taxpayers responsible for their losses.”

Speaking directly to Strang, Lambert continued, “I would hope that you would not want to accept responsibility for such an action. … Find it within yourself and resign your position, effective immediately.”

“If the county delegation can form an emergency meeting to name additional commissioners such that  quorum won’t be jeopardized and the commission can continue to function, then I will be happy to tender my resignation at that time,” Strang said.

The commissioners unanimously agreed to hire Attorney Timothy W. Tapply of Brand & Tapply LLC to handle “all matters pertaining to the contract between Gunstock and New Sound Concerts.” Tapply, who has consulted for Gunstock in the past, has been serving as an intermediary between the parties without charge up to this point.

The commission voted to seal the minutes of the July 29 meeting at which Ness resigned, but Strang inadvertently revealed part of the discussion while addressing the payment of attorney’s fees for a review of the events leading to Gunstock’s lawsuit against the Belknap County Convention. When Wood and Lambert opposed paying the invoice they had received on the 29th, Strang said it would be a second refusal after having denied payment when Attorney Peter Callaghan of Preti Flaherty Beliveau & Pachios previously appeared before them. Lambert cautioned Strang against speaking about actions during a non-public meeting.

Lambert said payment of the invoice could wait until the next commission meeting, and that he was willing to take a risk that the law firm would sue Gunstock over a late payment.

The Belknap County Delegation plans to hold an emergency session at Gunstock on Aug. 1 at 7 p.m. to address the resignation of Ness and the removal of Strang.