Council President Dean Dekker Unfit to Lead Common Council

Dean Dekker has avoided his responsibility as President of the Common Council. TBS referenced concerns regarding Alder Barb Felde’s attendance.

Felde has missed the majority of the meetings of her committees and the Common Council over the past few months.

Mayor Sorenson Fails to Lead Common Council: How Can He Lead Sheboygan?

TBS is shocked that this is not the only instance of Alders failing to serve their district and the city of Sheboygan. Alder Betty Ackley has also failed to fulfill the most basic requirements of the job by not showing up.

In the past six months, Ackley has missed:

47% of Common Council meetings
75% of Committee of the Whole meetings
80% of Licensing, Hearings, and Public Safety Committee meetings
71% of Finance and Personnel Committee meetings

Betty Ackley has failed to deliver to the residents of Sheboygan as an alder.

Dean Dekker has enabled this behavior.
Dean Dekker does not lead the council effectively.
Dean Dekker is unfit to serve as President of the Common Council.
Dekker has a history of failed leadership by allowing two alders not to show up!

Citizens have emailed city officials after a previous post about Barb Felde’s failure to serve as an alder.

The common response is that there is nothing that can be done.

Mayor Sorenson has stated that he does not have the power to remove a member of the Common Council.

That is a lie.

Section 2-33 of the Sheboygan Municipal Code states:

“Sec. 2-33. – Control of members. The common council shall be the judge of the election and qualifications of its members, may compel their attendance, and may fine or expel a member for neglect of duty. (Code 1975, § 2-23)

Link to Municipal Code

Mayor Sorenson is the presiding officer of the Common Council.
Dean Dekker is the Council President.

As leaders of the council, they have the authority to compel attendance and expel members for neglect of duty.

Why has Council President Dean Dekker not held Alders accountable?

There is no more precise definition of neglect of duty than failing to attend required meetings.

Could you neglect your job 47% of the time and remain employed?

The real world does not operate this way.
So why should the Common Council of Sheboygan?

If Dean Dekker was as committed to serving you as President of the Council as he was to defending former H.R. Director Adam Westbrook, who is facing federal charges for sex crimes against children and allegedly received videos of humans committing sexual acts with animals from his dog groomer, he would move to remove Alder Felde immediately.

Watch the video of Dean Dekker defending Westbrook here.

When is enough going to be enough for you?
Two federal lawsuits
Alders not showing up
A culture of fear and intimidation was allowed under Dekker’s watch

Are you ready to take action now? You must act today.

Email Mayor Sorenson and demand that he holds Council President Dekker accountable for failing to serve you as President of the Council.

ryan.sorenson@sheboyganwi.gov

Email Dean Dekker and demand he begin the process to remove Alder Felde immediately.

Feel free to share your thoughts with Alder Dekker on the video of him defending Westbrook.

dean.dekker@sheboyganwi.gov

Take Back Sheboygan County knows that many former and current City employees have been reluctant to share their stories for fear of retaliation. If you are one of these, we welcome you to contact us. Your name will not be shared without permission. You can contact us at https://takebacksheboygancounty.com/contact/.

You are the solution! Be part of a movement to improve your community!