State of Democracy in Cascade

This week, I filled out the city council agenda request and submitted it by Wed. a.m., as is required, along with documentation--emails with Brittney Kohler from the Nat'l League of Cities. At the candidate forum I had asked if the Sidewalk Ordinance they passed in 2017 was a) legal and b) fair. Nobody addressed the fair part. I, too, erroneously assumed that because they said it had come from the National League Cities, it was a model ordinance written by a lawyer and tested in a court of Law. Nix. Neither. 

Friday a.m. Deanna wrote that Mayor Greg Staner would not allow it on the agenda because it is a "new" issue.  This is the McConnell-Merrick-Garland move--stall when you are wrong. Britt at NLC had admitted:  "You’re correct – NLC’s recommendations do not equate to a legal standard, and to my knowledge, we have not provided any materials on this in the five years that I’ve been at NLC."

What sets me back on my heels is the 5-0 vote--the ordinance is transparently unfair--I saw just how when I was canvasing before the recent election. Less than 35-40% of Cascade has sidewalk. Oak Hill, Conrad Addition and Claddagh Court don't, only the old parts of the city. Maybe the new council will have a better sense of fairness and law. Here's hoping!

Another person also requested to be on the agenda, but Mayor Staner's refusal to let her on was far more pathetically  Merrick-Garland than mine--the stormwater ordinance is hardly "new." It has been  on nearly every agenda since November 2020 when we met with Eric Schmechel.  

If Mayor Staner does not want to deal with any of the controversial issues he leaves in has wake--may have even precipitated by his actions, I think he has an obligation, to resign and let the new mayor take over. 

Well,  I'm doing my annual pre-X-mas gig, so here's hoping I have the time to write a reflection on some of the people I met knocking doors before the election. It was great fun, people were kind and I loved meeting ordinary folks, seeing their values reflected in their homes.