Planning Board appoints Cross chair amid member’s call for code of conduct

The Windham Planning Board voted 5-2 on March 18 to make Jacob Cross its chair after a contested appointment process that a member said involved private discussions about leadership. Greg Balestrieri moved to appoint Cross; Jack Gattinella seconded the motion. Payal Ballaya and Matt Rounds opposed.

The vote was followed by the resignation of Matt Rounds, who left the meeting at about 7:20 p.m. Chair Cross thanked Rounds for his service. Cross then moved to appoint Gattinella as vice chair; Heath Partington seconded and the motion passed 5-1, with Ballaya opposed.

Ballaya urged the board to adopt a formal Code of Conduct and annual training, saying she believed some members had shown bias and that past and present female members had been treated poorly. "I do think current members have their biases and I do not appreciate the current process," Ballaya said, and she asked that the board add a Code of Conduct to a future workshop agenda.

Cross responded that he would be willing to place a Code of Conduct on a workshop agenda and the board agreed to begin leadership discussions via email so members can indicate interest in chair and vice chair positions more publicly.

The immediate personnel changes leave the board operating with six voting members for the meeting after Rounds’s resignation and the earlier departure of alternate Derek Monson. The board did not take formal disciplinary action; Ballaya said she will remain on the board. The board next plans to discuss the Code of Conduct at a workshop and to solicit candidate interest for leadership positions by email.