BELLEVUE - Bellevue City Councilwoman Kathy Welch vigorously defended herself Thursday against allegations in a recall petition that she called an act of political retaliation.

 

The petition was initiated by Pat Shannon, a fellow council member.

Shannon raised a number of question that included an allegation that Welch lived outside the ward she represented and that she had allegedly used insider information as a council member to profit from a real estate deal. There were further allegations of sexually inappropriate comments and betting drinks on how long council meetings would last.

Welch categorically denied all of the allegations Thursday and said at a news conference, "The mayor and all my colleagues, with the lone exception of Mr. Shannon, have reached out to me to offer support and encouragement in opposition to this recall stunt."

As the council considered an ordinance to address the possible removal for a council member from office, Welch said, "I initially supported a compromise that replaced the removal of an elected official with reprimands and less severe sanctions such as removal from committee assignments. I believe we need to respect the will of the voters but I also believe we must not ignore behavior that repeatedly degrades the civic life of our community."

 

She said the amended ordinance was approved on a 5-1 vote with Shannon offering the lone dissent.

Welch said that the allegations being made in the recall petition "are patently false."

Regarding not maintaining a residence in her ward she said, "This is untrue. While I own two houses, my heart and my toothbrush reside with me in my childhood home."

On the allegations that Welch violated state accountability guidelines by voting for a transaction that would involve her professional skills as a realtor she said, "Let the record show that Mr. Shannon was in the closed session and raised no concern over the matter at the time and neither did anyone else." She said she then acknowledged her role in the transaction in open session.

She said the matter was then taken to the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission for review. It was then reconsidered so she could declare a potential conflict "and remove myself from the vote. We did exactly that." She said she left the council chamber during discussion of the item.

 

"Mr. Shannon knows all of this and his petition is just as disingenuous with the people of Bellevue as his press conference was with the members of the news media."

Welch called the allegations of inappropriate language "absurd," adding, "Councilman Cook made it clear on the record that numerous vulgar comments and unprofessional remarks were actually made by another council member and that I, in fact, was the target of one of those disgusting, sexually inappropriate comments."

"I may be the only woman on this Bellevue City Council," she said, "but I am neither weak nor an easy target for intimidation by bully tactics."

She said I think this petition is motivated by a political retaliation, "and I intend to vigorously stand up to defend the facts and the right of the Bellevue citizens to expect decency, professionalism and leadership that moves our community forward."

Two years ago Shannon survived a recall attempt aimed at him.

Welch said the recall aimed at her is, "unnecessary and divisive for Bellevue and will lead to a costly special election."

In response to Welch's remarks on Thursday Shannon released the following statement:

"Kathy’s denial of her illegal vote that the City Council had to nullify, and take a new vote on at the next Council meeting was well covered and reported in the news. Denying something that is that provable just further damages her credibility.

"This is in the hands of the voters, where it belongs.

"She can resign at any time and end this for everyone."