Members of the public are calling for the Dillon city councilor’s comments

Local residents raised concerns at a Dillon City Council meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 22, about comments Councilman John Woods made during a meeting two weeks earlier.

The residents, who spoke during the public comment portion of the Oct. 22 meeting, described Woods making comments recommending not purchasing apartments in an apartment complex in the city. The comments were made in the context of discussing a reported maintenance issue at the apartment complex.

The recording by the city of the previous meeting on Tuesday, October 8 did not record Wood’s comments, but several residents, as well as the mayor and other council members, described hearing the comments. Dillon Town Manager Nathan Johnson said an audio issue resulted in the comments not being recorded and the footage not being edited.

During the recording of the Oct. 8 meeting, the comments in question cannot be heard, but Woods asks, “Is that on the record?” to which Mayor Carolyn Skowyra said, “Yes, that is definitely stated.” Later during the Oct. 8 meeting, Woods stated he wanted to change his previous comments about the apartment complex.

Sue Gannett, the president of the homeowners association for the apartment complex in question, called Woods’ comments “disparaging,” “false” and “defamatory.” Gannett called on the council to “take disciplinary action and remove Woods from the council.”

Woods admitted to making comments during the Oct. 22 meeting that he would not buy an apartment in the apartment complex, but disagreed with the exact language some residents claimed he said. He said it was “suggested” that he meant he would not buy a property there until the maintenance issue was resolved.

On Oct. 22, the Dillon City Council voted to update the Oct. 8 minutes to include language that council members agreed better reflected comments made during the meeting.

“I’m not a professional politician,” Woods said. “Sometimes I speak before I think.”