Arden Committees, Officers, Trustees, Assessors, etc.

Standing Committees | Appointed (Ad Hoc) Committees | Officers and Appointed Positions | Trustees | Assessors | Notes

Updated 6/10/2008. Read a brief description of how Arden's town government works.

Election Results: Click here to see the results of the election of committee members and officers at the Town Meeting of March 24, 2008.

Town Assembly

Anyone over the age of 18, who has been a resident of Arden for the last six months, is automatically a member of the Town Assembly, which is the village's governing body, a "pure" democracy. Town Meetings are held on the 4th Monday of January, March, June and September. The Town Assembly has several committees, shown below. Committee members are elected at the March meeting.

Standing Committees

Nominations are made at the January town meeting and may continue up to the March Advisory meeting. Election is at the March meeting. Two names must be nominated for each position open. All terms are for two years.

Advisory Committee

Bill Theis, 475-1995, Chair
The Advisory Committee is made up of the chairpersons of all the standing committees, plus the town officers, the senior trustee, and the chair of the Board of Assessors. It acts as a coordinating committee and sets the agenda for the town meetings. Chairperson of the Advisory Committee
is elected each year at the March meeting. Any eligible voter may be nominated as chairperson. Advisory Committee minutes from May 28, 2008.

Archives Committee

Lisa Mullinax, 529-7399, Chair *
The Archives Committee preserves the history of the village
by collecting and preserving documents, photos, etc.; presenting displays and programs about Arden’s past, its people and its arts; and running the Arden Craft Shop Museum along with representatives of Ardentown and Ardencroft. The committee seeks grants to support the museum. Many residents volunteer to help the committee with its projects.

Auditing Committee

Cookie Ohlson, 529-7959, Chair *
The Auditing Committee meets in June to examine specific accounts in the general ledgers of the town and trustees to asure that they are in agreement with the audit done by the CPA firm of Corcoran and Co., P.A. The Auditing Committee reports to the June Town Assembly.

Budget Committee

Jeff Politis, 529-9146, Chair *
The Budget Committee organizes past and coming-year village expenditures for presentation to the September Town Assembly. It also prepares a three-year projection for the March Assembly. The September report forms the basis of the annual budget referendum. To prepare reports, committee members communicate with the other standing committees, the town secretary, treasurer and the trustees. This information-gathering activity provides an excellent overview of Arden’s governmental structure and its finances.

Buzz Ware Village Center Committee

Willard Glenn, 529-7862, Chair *
The BWVC Committee oversees maintenance, security and use of the center (2119 The Highway), which is owned by the village and formerly was our community school. The committee also administers leases and contracts for the building and plans programs of interest to the community. This building is a community resource, and the committee encourages its use by residents. Committee meetings are held in the evening on a monthly basis, year round. Click here to learn more about the Buzz or to reserve a room.

Civic Committee

Susan Rothrock, 373-5270, Chair, ardencivic@theardens.com *
The Civic Committee supervises maintenance and repair of roads, paths, greens and forests, as well as storm sewers. This includes determining when repairs are needed, soliciting competitive bids, and getting contractors to do necessary work. It oversees most permits. One member of the committee acts as liason with the trash collection company.

Community Planning Committee

Ray Seigfried, 475-2721, Chair, planning@theardens.com *
The Community Planning Committee plans the “physical and cultural future of the community.” It works with other committees to plan projects that have a major impact on the village and to address forces impacting the Village from outside. The committee also has a few non-planning responsibilities that have historically fallen to it, including overseeing the Memorial Garden (cemetery). Click here to read recent meeting minutes.

Forest Committee

Carl Falco, 475-1976, Former Chair, forest@theardens.com *
The Forest Committee implements Arden's Forest Stewardship
Policy, oversees trail improvement, tree felling in the woods, plant removal, and strives to prevent encroachment and stream erosion. It coordinates the annual woods cleanup.

Playground Committee

Mary Vernon, 475-4440, Chair *
The Playground Committee assures that the playground equipment on the Arden Green and Sherwood Green is in good, safe condition. The committee inspects the equipment every other month during the winter and every month during the summer. Members spread mulch in the play areas as needed and contract for painting and repair. They also recommend purchase of new equipment.

Registration Committee

Cecilia Vore, 475-1976, Chair, registration@theardens.com *
The Registration Committee conducts town elections and the annual referendum on the budget and Board of Assessors (held in the fall, after the September town meeting). Keeping track of the census and the list of registered voters are additional responsibilities of the committee.

Safety Committee

Denis O'Regan, 529-1269, Chair, ardenSafety@theardens.com *
Broadly speaking, the committee handles safety issues. It replaces and installs stop signs, no parking signs, etc., throughout the town. It oversees the Town Watch for the three Ardens and acts as liason with the New Castle County Police, but it does NOT handle complaints: those should be referred to the police.

*New chairs will be elected by April 24, 2008.

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Appointed (Ad Hoc) Committees

From time to time, committees are appointed to handle specific tasks.

Johanna Schroeder Bequest Ad Hoc Committee

This committee was appointed to develop policies and procedures with dealing with Johanna Schroeder's generous donation of her estate to the village. Members are Alton Dahl (chair), Derrick Kennedy (secretary), Ron Meick, Sue Rothrock, and Steven Threefoot.

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Officers and Appointed Positions

Officers are elected and serve for one year at a time

Several positions are appointed:

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Trustees

Call 475-7980 for questions about leaseholds or other trustee issues.

The trustees collect the land rent, pay county and school taxes, oversee administrative costs of the trust, and see that the money remaining is spent in accordance with the approved Village of Arden budget. They also invest funds and approve the transfer of leases when houses are sold. Occasionally they decide on requests to divide lots or adjust boundaries (subject to zoning restrictions); give authorization to cut trees on leaseholds; deal with encroachment issues, housing code violations, and other matters related to the leaseholds as designated by the Deed of Trust. Often the trustees communicate with outside agencies affecting the welfare of the village. When a vacancy occurs, the remaining two trustees solicit input from the residents and nominate a new trustee. The nominee is then approved or disapproved in a referendum of all eligible voters. Election is for life. The current trustees are:
Carl Falco
Connee McKinney
Mike Curtis
The administrative assistant is Elizabeth Varley.

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Assessors

The Board of Assessors establishes the land rent rates for Arden leaseholds, according to the Georgist principle of “full rental value” of the land. Since Henry George himself never spelled out how to calculate “full rental value,” this is no simple task. Nominations are made at the September town meeting; election is by referendum in the fall, using the Hare System of Proportional Representation. The assessors elected in November, 2007, are (in order elected): Alton Dahl (chair), Carl Falco, Walter Borders, Denis O’Regan, Mary Marconi, Brooke Bovard and Alan Threefooot.

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Notes

*Convenors received the highest number of votes at last election. They are responsible for convening their committees within 30 days after their election, at which time a chair will be elected and the year's work outlined.

Committee chairs are responsible for scheduling committee meetings, attending (or assigning someone to attend) Advisory Committee meetings, giving (or having someone give) reports at Town Meetings, nominating two (2) people for every upcoming vacancy at the January Advisory meeting, keeping (or have someone keep) minutes of all committee meetings, and ensuring that the committee fulfills its responsibilities.

Alternates and Procedure for Filling a Vacancy: Alternates are the next-highest vote getters in the most recent election. They are recorded for the convenience of the committee as possible replacements for a vacancy. Should a vacancy occur in a committee, nominations are made at the next Town Meeting to complete the unfinished term. The committee may make a nomination; that nominee may be the alternate, but could be someone else. Election is by voice vote if there is only one nominee, by voice vote or secret ballot if there are two or more nominees.

*Ties in municipal elections are resolved at the next Town Meeting. Ties for “Alternates” do not need to be resolved, since both are possible replacements should a vacancy occur in the committee.

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