During the Helper City Council meeting on Oct. 20, Pam Juliano asked to speak during the public comment period. She began by thanking the council for the time to address them.
Juliano resides in Helper and owns a business on Helper Main Street with her husband, which they have ran for over 30 years. She also operates a consulting business out of the building located at 69 South. She then stated that she was there to discuss concerns that she had regarding posts presented on social media recently.
Juliano found it frustrating to hear about a serious issue on social media versus being informed with a formal notification. She was further frustrated to learn that it is actually a personal matter and that an elected official chose to put it in a social media format.
Juliano stated that she has a great deal of respect for the development of properties in Helper but is not a fan of learning concerns from social media. The situation in question concerned her as she is about to invest money in a building without previous knowledge of potential concerns.
What Juliano was speaking of is a Facebook post that was made by Helper City Councilwoman Malarie DeVincent, in which she stated, “After many long frustrating months and many sleepless nights of having the ‘riverhouse restoration project’ shut down and on hold, waiting for an answer as how to proceed, Helper Cities Floodplain Administrator, with the heavy handed guidance from the Counties Building Director, has chosen to apply ridiculous rules for these historic homes that have never, EVER been enforced before on a single property in Helper City.”
Councilwoman DeVincent continued by stating that the rules were so stringent that the homes would likely crumble in the process of trying to comply. The purpose of Councilwoman DeVincent’s post was to inform those that have property on the flood zones and to offer a chance to plead the case of the homes.
Juliano continued her concern by stating that those on the council are elected officials and that their responsibility is to their constituents. She also said that they are all responsible for managing themselves in a professional manner.
Juliano found it very disheartening, as part of the business community, that a private matter was taken to a social media platform and put on a public forum. She believed that this could have been met with a better solution, but now it is full of emotion and Juliano expressed her disappointment.
Following Juliano’s statement, Councilwoman DeVincent said that this issue affects nearly 180 buildings in the flood plain. Therefore, she believes that it is not just a personal issue. Many of those buildings are also contributing to the recently expanded historic district and is something that she has worried about for many months.
Councilwoman DeVincent then apologized that Juliano had not heard about the issue from an official city standpoint, because she had also been waiting for it to happen. She then explained that she is also a private citizen with a private Facebook, which allows her the freedom to post as she chooses.
However, Councilwoman DeVincent stated that she would take the posting into consideration in the future. With all due respect, she said that she loves the city and does not just help her husband in the situation, but also has been helping her neighbor that is facing the same circumstance. DeVincent said she has reached out for help, but it has fallen on deaf ears.