Mailbag: "Mason" writes: View from the Inside

Views from the Inside…

The re-organization of the city’s government has come and gone and now the city is getting down to business. And it appears as if business is moving smoothly so far.

On Monday May 1st the City’s Plan Commission, of which I became an appointed and confirmed member at our second re-organization meeting, included a public hearing of much interest. A gentleman of the name of Mr. Morice applied for a conditional use permit in the hopes of running a bowling alley/family entertainment center/sports bar on the east side of town. The Plan Commission held a public hearing and the public came out by means of a decent sized crowd.

The people who spoke, who were predominately not in favor of the granting of the conditional use permit, were very direct and to the point. The points made were strong arguments and proved responsible for guiding my vote and the votes of the rest of the committee. Therein lies the beauty of the public hearing, the people have the power.

So assuming you have people who care about an issue and an impartial panel of officials, democracy at a local level is not only possible, but guaranteed. Of course we cannot assume any of those things; but we can ask that people attend public hearings and that the officials on the board governing said hearing will be unbiased and willing to hear all arguments posed.

What is the moral of the story already? The upshot is you have to show up and participate at the committee meetings, not just the council meetings. And, of course, you have to vote.

There are a few public hearings coming up on the calendar to include, but not necessarily limited to a public hearing on the creation of TID #6 at next month’s Plan Commission meeting. Check your Observer and Review for the details. Now that it is in your hands…what will you do with it?