Ken Weir went on KGET this week to talk more about why Russell Johnson has to go.

The summary:

“Mr. Johnson is not accountable to anyone at the city, he’s not independent due to his employment relationship, and he doesn’t respect private property rights.”

I'm not sure what accountability to the city would be, except that I thought planning commissioners were supposed to be unaccountable, as in independent.

Johnson is not independent, he said, because he works for Mike Maggard. “He has obligations that lie outside the city.” Doesn't everybody? Certainly Andy Stanley, also a planning commissioner and also an at-will employee of a county supervisor, does.

The private property rights thing is that Johnson voted to take away two-thirds of a man's land. What he's referring to is the property of Gordon Downs, whose land is part of the Canyons project, and who was a client of Weir's until late 2006. Weir insisted Johnson's removal isn't about The Canyons.

Also, the vote was 6-0. Current planning commissioners Ted Blockley, Jeff Tkac and Murray Tragish also voted that way. Blockley and Tragish spoke against Weir at the last council meeting; Tkac was there but didn't speak, he was just there to acknowledge his reappointment by Jacquie Sullivan.

Weir said he accepts that he could be the target of a recall election. “If i have to take some heat for making the right decision, then so be it.”