(7/24) Without fanfare or prior announcement, the Carroll Valley Borough Council changed its vice president during its July meeting. A motion made by Councilmember Cody Gilbert to vacate the office of vice president, held by Councilmember John Schubring, passed 5-2 without discussion. John Schubring and Councilmember Catherine Schubring cast the opposition votes.
Gilbert’s motion was not listed on the agenda and the Council did not vote to amend the agenda. The Pennsylvania Sunshine Act dictates governing bodies can only add an item to its agenda if it meets one of three exceptions and the majority of council votes to approve the amendment. The Carroll Valley Council did not vote to approve nor amend its agenda.
Councilmembers Richard Mathews, Michael Wight, Bruce Carr, David Lillard, and Gilbert chose Carr as the new vice president. John Schubring voted for Wight; Catherine Schubring chose John Schubring.
The vote to replace John Schubring caps off months of quiet tension amongst the Council. In May, John Schubring’s brown nameplate with white lettering stated his full name sans honorific, matching the rest of the Council’s. During the June meeting, John Schubring’s conventional nameplate was replaced with a large tent card that doubled the size of everyone else’s and he was referred to as 'Dr. Schubring' in bold, underlined lettering. In July, the Council had new nameplates with everyone’s honorific in front of their full name.
When the secretary took roll call at the beginning of the June meeting, every member of Council said "here" after his or her name was called. When the secretary said, "John Schubring," he responded, "Dr. Schubring is here."
In June, John Schubring asked Police Chief Clifford Weikert about a citizen complaint concerning an "officer tailing an individual." Solicitor Zachary Rice of Salzmann Hughes advised against discussing a complaint in public. John Schubring also unsuccessfully attempted to call an executive session to discuss personnel issues.
At the beginning of the July meeting, John Schubring and Catherine Schubring voted against approving the minutes of the June meeting.
"I would like to see that the minutes reflect that there is no mention of the police report of April 24, 2024," John Schubring said.
At the end of the July meeting, John Schubring requested an executive session to discuss term limits and evaluations of senior staff. Rice said the topic was too broad to discuss in an executive session since it did not involve an individual’s performance.
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