Waldport Mayor Goes To Court Over Writ

Mayor Lamber (center) with her lawyers

Waldport Mayor Heide Lambert was back in court on July 15th asking the court to withdraw the dismissal of the Writ of Review action against the city of Waldport. The city submitted a dismissal based on its reinstatement of Lambert as Mayor. Judge Bachart in May ordered the city to provide documentation necessary for the review and also issued a Writ of Stay, which essentially put the council’s actions and Lambert’s removal on hold until a court decision had been made.

The city cited financial reasons for their reinstatement of the Mayor rather than pay for what could have been a lengthy and expensive court case.  Lambert’s attorney claimed that the city did not apologize to her for their actions and was concerned that there was nothing stopping the city from taking this action again and kicking her out of city hall if they didn’t like something she does. Lambert has said it has been tough trying to work with the other city council members while trying to make sure citizens' voices are recognized.

There are still issues facing the city of Waldport that citizens have been asking for answers to, including what is happening with the city's audits, which haven't been completed in nearly 5 years. There are also recent complaints regarding city contracts that need council attention. The attorney for the city argued that the council vacated their dismissal of Mayor Lambert, and this made the case moot.

After deliberation, Judge Bachart ruled the resolution of dismissal of the writ from the city is still in place. She did acknowledge the concerns of repeat behavior and awarded Lambert her court costs to be paid by the city. She concluded, “Nothing will prevent her from pursuing civil action for damages.” Lambert said, “This is not about money, it’s about freedom of speech.”