This town of 1,700 is to mayors what Dodge City once was to sheriffs. In the last 20 years, 14 mayors have passed through city hall. Six have faced recall campaigns, including the most recent four. When the city clerk, Barbara Brown, is asked how many mayors have resigned since 1980, she bursts out laughing. Too many to count, she says, recalling only one mayor who served a complete term. None have sought reelection.
Moe knew the odds when he took the job. "I didn't come in cold," he declares. "When they say recall, I've heard it before. In Spirit Lake, it's almost become a habit--I don't know of anyone who's been here longer than six months without getting a citizen recall attempt."
The mayoralty of Spirit Lake, which pays $300 a month, has never been an easy job. Squabbling, name-calling and vulgarity are routine at City Hall. "The town has a tendency to break up into factions," Moe sighs. "It's gotten to the point that it's absolutely ridiculous." The subjects of debate range from the size of Spirit Lake's police force-- some say the current three officers are sufficient; others want more cops--to allegations of mishandled money at city hall.
But the cause of Moe's immediate problem is his $2.2 million proposal to repave the town's dusty, pot-holed roads. Like many past proposals, the plan was "shouted down at three public hearings and vociferously rejected by the public," according to Jack Fraser, a resident and plan opponent.
The 61-year-old Moe, a long-time member of the city council and the planning board, ran for office last year on a platform of responsible development to remedy Spirit Lake's recent growing pains. A timber town in the northern Idaho panhandle, Spirit Lake had been slumbering since its bustling peak in the 1930s. But the population has doubled in the past decade as newcomers move in, attracted by the pristine lake, which sits nearly half a mile above sea level.
Moe's roads proposal, which would cost each resident $15 a month for the next 20 years, has produced some enemies. Among them is Citizens for Responsible Government, which in June obtained enough signatures on a petition to force Moe out of office, only to see it thrown out by the city attorney because of technical errors.
Fraser, one of the petition's proponents, depicts Moe as unprofessional and short-tempered, squandering city money on half- baked plans. Fraser touts a reformed local government in which a city manager would run things quietly from behind the scenes. "You shouldn't get any ego gratification from being mayor--it's a thankless job, and it should be," he says. Fraser vows to renew the recall effort, noting that the petition's 197 signatures far outweighed the 120 votes that put Moe in office.
Moe is openly contemptuous of the effort. "I know who they are," he says. "There's only about five of them determined to run this thing to the ground, and I just let 'em." His thick skin would seem to make him fit for weathering Spirit Lake's rough political climate--although history has a way of repeating itself there.
Exactly what lies at the heart of Spirit Lake's anti-mayor syndrome isn't clear. Former mayor Bob Street, who left city hall after only seven months, has attributed it to "the air up here." Mayor Moe thinks it's immaturity. "Spirit Lake just has to grow up," he barks.
The town may do just that. Some feel that demographic changes will ultimately lift the town out of its longstanding crankiness. Moe isn't holding his breath until that day comes, however. "In a town of this size, no matter what decision you make, the grumbling finds its way to city hall," he says. "In a bigger town, people don't have the time or inclination to care about what their government does."
