Rift In Port Angeles City Council

Apparently things aren’t going too smoothly at the Port Angeles City Council. City Manager Mark Madsen has described an “increasingly open and destructive display of disrespect for fellow council members…Certain council members are using their council voice to undermine the legitimate issues and programs supported by other council members, whom they don't like.”

Madsen is considering resigning his position as City Manager if these feuds aren’t resolved. My brief impressions of Mark Madsen — based only on a few PADA Morning Mingles — was that he’s a straightforward what-you-see-is-what-you-get kind of guy. Unlike so many Port Angeles “players,” he doesn’t seem to have ulterior motives or an agenda.

Without knowing any details of these rifts — who’s doing what to whom — it might be a sign that the local Good Old Boy network is losing its grip. If that’s the case, it’s probably a good thing for Port Angeles in the long run, even if it means a lot of strife and anxiety in the short term.