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SIDNEY – The Sidney Town Council heard a barrage of comments and concerns from residents, as well as calls for the resignation of Clerk-Treasurer Lisa Parrett, during a meeting Monday, Nov. 9.
The meeting began to heat up after Councilwoman Sharon Rancourt shared an update from Gemini Billing Services.
At October’s meeting, the council voted to move forward with the company to handle late notices, checks and resident billing. Because there was no information on the payment gateway going back through 2025, Gemini was also going to be hired at an hourly rate to collect that information in addition to the monthly payment.
“Gemini sent back an email … after further investigation, (they determined) the information is out of the scope of their ability to be able to move forward with,” Rancourt said. In reading a text message she received from the company, Rancourt stated Gemini said it would be “biting off more than they can chew at this time,” also as a result of “the way that the books are right now.”
In response, Lisa stated she was told “drama going on right now” was the actual response from Gemini.
After some further discussion about Gemini’s response, Sidney resident Ron Neal asked Lisa if the council had been notified about her need for help with the books.
The question prompted opposing answers from Rancourt, who stated Lisa hadn’t told them, and Lisa, who stated she had told them “every meeting.”
“How did these books get so out of line … that four people can’t keep them caught up? Especially the people that … are paid to do so?” Neal asked the council. He said checks for sewer payments aren’t cashed for months.
When Lisa stated “that’s not true,” former councilman Rick Bradley stood up to express his agreement with Neal.
“I went three months with checks – and I can prove it, too, I can go back in my checking account – three months it went before my check was cashed,” Bradley stated.
After Neal returned to the conversation about Gemini, Lisa stated the company had not yet seen the books, adding that “everything is filed and everything is there.”
“Lisa … I’d appreciate if you step down,” Bradley said. “I’d appreciate if you get your son (Council President Gavin Parrett) to step down.” He said having a mother “running the paperwork” and a son as council president was “not right,” with another individual in the room adding it was a “conflict of interest.”
“Lisa, (Rancourt) can’t do her job because you’re not doing your job,” Bradley said.
Bradley then mentioned Lisa’s pay and her time spent in office.
“I can go up to the office, you’re never there,” he said. Bradley said others in the room had stated she doesn’t answer phone calls. In response, Lisa said she doesn’t answer “after hours,” prompting Bradley to ask what her hours were.
“If (the job) was being done, this thing wouldn’t be such a mess,” Neal stated. He asked Lisa to explain why sewer payments were behind, how many liens had been placed and how many notices had been sent out.
Lisa referenced an earlier comment she made about personal events and health problems that had caused her to fall behind.
“I don’t recall you ever coming up and asking me anything, Ron,” Lisa said. “Even Rick has not – you’ve never come up and expressed any sort of thing … all you’ve ever talked about was the gravel.”
“I came to you and I said, how come these checks haven’t been cashed,” Bradley said. “Your word was, ‘I got behind and I needed to get it done.”’
“You’ve got a bunch of people here wanting you and Gavin to step down,” Bradley said. “I’m telling you right now, I’m going to dog you to death until you do.”
Resident comments continued until Lisa mentioned the books being in line for the SBO audit period, and Rancourt stepped in.
“They could not complete the audit because you did not have all the information,” Rancourt said. “… You haven’t filed the lien since 2023. You haven’t done penalties since 2023. We’re supposed to have, according to your papers, $40,000 in the sewer account right now. We have $15,000.”
“The money is there as the money is supposed to be,” Lisa said.
Lisa and Rancourt went back and forth on the amounts until Neal asked Lisa where she had been working on the amounts. She stated the office.
In response to a resident’s question about whether there would be enough money to make a payment, Rancourt said there was not.
“No; if rural development was supposed to come out, we do not have enough money to pay it,” Rancourt said. “We’re supposed to have … one payment in the account at all times, which means we should have $22,000 in that account at all times at a minimum.”
In response to another comment, Rancourt agreed “the state would step in, the town loses its asset (the sewer), and we would get turned back over to the county.”
“I’ve been trying to get things straightened out,” Lisa said.
Neal asked Lisa about her pay for both the sewer clerk and town clerk jobs.
“It’s $700 a month to do both jobs together,” Lisa said. Rancourt, however, said Lisa grossed $900, with $600 paid for sewer clerk and $300 for town clerk. Rancourt and Lisa then argued about that.
“Why do we have to pay you if you aren’t going to do it, and you’ve got this thing in such a mess that a professional company, designed to take care of the sewer plant, can’t figure it out?” Neal said. He asked who took care of her pay, to which Lisa said she writes her own checks.
Bradley once again called for her resignation, asking Kosciusko County Republican Chair Mike Ragan what the town could do.
Ragan said the election next year was the next time a new clerk-treasurer could be elected.
“When I ask for information, and I don’t get information month after month after month, and I’m promised information and it doesn’t show up … I don’t have access to the books, and there is not visibility, and there is not transparency, then this is where we land,” Rancourt said in response to a resident’s question about checks and balances. “In theory, it is the president’s responsibility to make sure the town clerk is doing her job and that the workings of the town are going as they should, so that is Gavin’s responsibility.”
The conversation continued, with several other residents joining in to voice their concerns and complaints.
“It has been a constant battle with you to get anything done in this town and you’re telling me that I’m something else?” Rancourt said to Lisa. “Do you know that I’ve had to do your job all summer and send ordinance violations and cover for you for the summer … because you wouldn’t do it?”
Lisa’s answer was drowned out by other voices in the room.
Later, Rancourt shared her opinion on the topic.
“Lisa, it’s time to step down … because it’s a cash cow for you,” Rancourt said. “… You are not trustworthy with these books.” Her response was met with applause. Rancourt asked for a date for when the books would be caught up.
Lisa said she would finish what needed to be done by the end of the year.
“Our commission goes until 12/31/27,” she added. “I will not resign this position until that park is finished.”
In other news, the council also heard an update from Kosciusko County Community Coordinator Amy Roe about the park project.
The town of Sidney has reapplied for a grant through the K21 Health Foundation. Sinclair Recreation has also added the park to a designation free of charge, which will provide a tool to show K21 the health impacts of the park, a requirement for the grant.
When the park is completed, the designation will provide free reports about how many people are using it and other statistics.
Roe asked for a town contribution of $8,930 to show community buy-in for the park. Rancourt stated while she was interested in funding the park, she felt she was “not in a position to vote on this” at the time.
“To be clear, this has nothing to do with me wanting or not wanting the park,” Rancourt said. “What this has to do with is my frustration about not being able to do the things that need to be done for this town. When we try to, we have a roadblock, and the roadblock is Lisa because things don’t get done … I’m not voting for anything until the books are caught up.”
