GENESEE - A dispute over water rights turned personal at Tuesday night's Genesee City Council meeting.

On the agenda, councilors were discussing whether or not to shut off water to a home owned by Gary and Elizabeth Gage, who live about a mile outside the Genesee city limits.

The city asserts the Gage's have been using, but not paying for their domestic water for nearly 30 years.

Gage said the meeting was less about water, and more about bringing to light his side of an altercation he said he and Mayor Randy Hall had months ago. Gage said he was verbally assaulted by Hall in August when Hall confronted him about the water use. Gage did not press charges in connection with the alleged incident. And Tuesday night, instead of pleading with the city to keep his water on, Gage exchanged heated words with the mayor.

"You have water that you've been using..." said Hall.

"You're trying to prevent people from hearing this," said Gage.

"I'm not either, but it's not pertinent to what we're doing here," said Hall.

"It certainly is," said Gage.

"It's not either," said Hall.

"It certainly is," said Gage.

"It's not at all. They called me because you have chlorinated water coming out of those faucets. City water. This has nothing to do with what's going on," Hall said.

"You're trying to drown out the facts here," said Gage.

"Just do what you need to do," said Hall. "Fifteen minute break."

Gage then went after Hall with allegations that Hall has no right to be mayor, because he doesn't live within city limits. That didn't sit well with Hall.

"We're not here to quibble about me and my personal life, as I'm not going to quibble about you and your personal life," said Hall. "We're here to get to the facts of the water use. As far as you talking about me not being legal, you don't know where you're coming from. So, either you sit down and be quiet, or have something pertinent to add to this conversation."

"You sit down and be quiet," said Gage.

At one point Hall attempted to address the August incident, but City Attorney Ken Nagy advised otherwise.

Discussion lasted nearly two hours, and at one point, Latah County Sheriff's Deputies showed up at the request of the mayor, but soon left.

In the end, Councilor George Wilson voted to table a decision on the water use until the next council meeting, hoping "cooler heads prevail."