HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-23-24 Public Comment - L. Von Seggern - Harassment Incidents at City Commission MeetingsFrom:Lindsey Von Seggern
To:Bozeman Public Comment
Subject:[EXTERNAL]Harassment Incidents at City Commission Meetings
Date:Tuesday, April 23, 2024 8:38:18 AM
Attachments:04-23-24 Public Comment - L VonSeggern - Harassment Incidents at City Commission Meetings.pdf
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Please include the attached public comment for The Guthrie #23354.
Thank you,
Lindsey Von Seggern
Page 1 of 2 Mayor Cunningham, You and the Commissioners work hard to create a safe place for community members to share and participate in City Commission Meetings. I appreciated your remarks towards the beginning of the April 16th Commission Meeting, encouraging the audience to ‘sit around the kitchen table and participate in a way that treats us all like the neighbors we are’. This occurred at time stamp [1:17:14] in the video link below. It is essential to cultivate an atmosphere where all individuals feel comfortable to voice their opinions and exchange thoughts. Unfortunately, I need to bring two incidents to your attention. Both were a direct result of my public comments regarding The Guthrie which is why I am including here as a part of public record. Incidents like what occurred to me are completely unacceptable. I encourage discourse about the project, but these individuals crossed a line when they made the discussion personal, resulting to tactics that were intimidating and should be considered harassment. I recognize that passions run high concerning this project, but it is crucial that discussions remain respectful and civil. No one should feel harassed or intimidated, as I have experienced at two consecutive City meetings. Moving forward, it is imperative that future meetings provide a safe environment for all participants, reflecting the ethos of the Community Kitchen Table. Thank you, Lindsey Von Seggern April 2nd, 2024: I, Lindsey Von Seggern, attended the City Commission Meeting on April 2nd, 2024 because I work for Homebase Partners and we had heard that The Guthrie was going to be discussed during ‘General Public Comment’ period. Over 40 community members, including myself, shared a public comment. At the end of the General Public Comment period, around 7:45pm, the Commissioners took a recess. It was during this recess that Jerry Pape approached me, verbally intimidated me, and I felt threatened by him. We were both standing in the Commission Room, I was gathering my purse and coat at my seat when he approached me. Jerry insulted me, my employer (HomeBase Partners), and my boss (Andy Holloran). He asked if I knew who I was working for, and said that Andy “is evil and soon enough you will become (evil) like him by working for him”. Jerry made it personal and attacked me instead of talking about the project. He verbally intimidated me in a public forum. I asked him to stop insulting me. He did not stop and continued to say terrible things. I then explained to him that I was starting to feel unsafe and threatened by him. He disagreed with my statement that he was being threatening. I repeated that twice and started to walk away. A woman overheard this conversation and asked if I wanted her to escort me out to my vehicle. I agreed and we walked outside together.
Page 2 of 2 April 16th, 2024: Video Link: https://bozeman.granicus.com/player/clip/2261?view_id=1&redirect=true I, Lindsey Von Seggern, attended the City Commission Meeting on April 16th, 2024 because The Guthrie was an agenda item. Because of the previous incident on April 2nd, I did not attend the meeting alone, I was joined by two of my colleagues, Andrew Gault and Lauren Cummings. The Commissioners had just voted on The Guthrie agenda item and Mayor Cunningham was providing closing remarks. I was sitting down, listening to the Mayor when the incident occurred. My seat was on the aisle, closest to the exit towards the foyer. [Video time stamp 2:08:12, the man, myself, Andrew, and Lauren are all barely visible at the very bottom left of the screen] As the Mayor was still speaking a man walks over to me, he towers over me as I am sitting down and gets about 2 inches away from my face. He proceeds to scream at me “hey, why don’t you take this #@*% building and plonk it somewhere else. This is absolutely…” It was at this point that my colleagues noticed what is