In April 2024, I was appointed as Bayfield’s deputy town clerk by resolution (Resolution 613) for a one-year term, pursuant to Bayfield Municipal Code § 2-6.9. My position was eliminated in March 2025, before the end of my term, without a required hearing, without findings and without the April officer appointment process occurring. These steps are not discretionary under state statute or municipal code.
I spoke with a former deputy city clerk who encouraged me to call out this action directly to the town of Bayfield. I did; and the town chose to hide it. After nearly a decade of service, I heard stories for years about “small town officers being removed to avoid transparency” and thought they had to be exaggerations.
Now, I am living the example. Bayfield is not unique. These kinds of “quiet removals,” procedural shortcuts and elimination-by-reclassification tactics undermine statutory continuity of office, public meeting openness, the purpose of appointed terms and citizen trust.
Bayfield deserves better.
Kristin Dallison
Bayfield
