Sun Valley council members criticize Ketchum official's opinion letter

During council comment at the May 20 special meeting, Council Member Jane Conard said she was concerned by a letter from Jim Slanetz of Ketchum, calling parts of it unhelpful and saying it cast aspersions on Sun Valley staff. Council Member Michelle Griffith said the letter was "just an opinion" and that she did not believe it was Slanetz's place to criticize city staff.

Council President Keith Saks said he disagreed with much of the letter and argued that the City of Ketchum benefits from Sun Valley's aerial ladder without contributing toward it. Mayor Peter Hendricks called public criticism of another public entity's staff "particularly offensive" but said the city remains open to substantive discussions about consolidation or service agreements. No action was taken on the letter itself; the remarks were part of council comment preceding the fire-agreement discussion.