( - promoted by Dean Barker)
I have been riveted lately by Manchester government. In the past, I tried to stay out of Manchester issues as much as possible, but actions by Ted Gatsas have me paying much closer attention than ever before.
Last night, I was stunned to see the aldermen pass a department consolidation proposed by Gatsas, even though (a) no notice had been given to the public that this matter might be discussed at the meeting, let alone voted on (b) the public therefore had no opportunity to weigh in, and (c) the proposal included ordinance revisions that no only were not available to the public, but which had been passed out to the aldermen at the meeting. In other words, they voted to pass ordinance revisions that they did not thoroughly review. Although the public never had a chance to comment, however, it was clear that the mayor had been weighing in with the aldermen, as there were several references to private meetings held in the mayor's office with individual aldermen to lobby them for their votes. The people who are going to be laid off as a result of the vote never had that chance.
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This type of closed government, and the unfortunate willingness of too many Democratic members of the board to participate in it, saddens me. The issue isn't whether the consolidation was a good idea, or a bad idea. The issue is that governing should not be done behind closed doors, with no opportunity for the people of the city to comment.
I was especially saddened to hear one of the three young Democrats on the board, Patrick Arnold, rationalize his vote in favor of consolidation by saying change is never easy, but things have to change. Making closed door decisions, not notifying the public that a vote is going to take place, and making your mind up to vote for the proposal before you have read the proposed ordinance revisions, is not change. It is the same old way that city government has operated for far too long - which is one of the reasons I always tried to stay away from Manchester government. But it is time to start paying attention.
I was also really sad when another Democratic alderman, who voted against the proposal, prefaced his remarks by almost apologizing to the mayor for his vote, saying how he has supported the mayor, and will support him in the future, and thanked him for bringing the matter forward. Alderman, you don't have to apologize when you do what you think is right.
Kudos to Betsi DeVries who stood up to the mayor on this issue, and urged the aldermen not to waive the rules on the vote (waiving the rules means that it would not have to go through the usual process of a review by the Committtee on Bills on Second Reading). The mayor was not pleased, but city government should not be about pleasing the mayor. It should be about openness, and doing what is right for the people of Manchester.
Manchester BH'ers, you also may want to start paying attention to what is happening in the Queen City, too. A no - bid 20 year contract extension voted on without public notice, a major department consolidation voted on without public notice, efforts to scapegoat refugees, a task force from a committee set up by the mayor issuing a report calling for privatizing some city functions that seem to be working pretty well, the vote to go ahead with a major retail project against the wishes of the neighborhood, and on and on, all in less than three months, with only a handful of aldermen showing any willingness to ask questions. This is not good government, and Manchester deserves better.
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