an open and closed case
Open Meetings vs. Open Process
AY PAC applauds all efforts by our city to promote open processes, meetings and decision making. On the surface, the recent open meetings resolution appears to help citizens’ awareness of meetings and decisions by all levels of commissions including sub committees.
Looking for transparency
This open meetings change will affect volunteer citizens on many committees. These volunteers may have to do a little more work, and take a little more risk to serve their city, all in the hope of keeping the public informed of opportunities to keep aware of meeting times and upcoming decisions.
Sadly, the process by which this open meetings resolution was enacted is exactly the opposite of an open process. This is not just ironic, but suspect.
For instance, consider that this resolution was sent to the city clerk and posted to the council packets at 4:16 p.m. the day of the city council meeting, less than 3 hours before council was to convene. AY PAC asks ‘why’? There was no emergency, no timeline that needed to be met on this issue. There was no pressing need that forced this to be addressed and resolved THAT NIGHT.
If anyone can inform AY PAC as to why this was so urgent that it needed to be addressed in a timeline that included NO opportunity for public comment and little reflection by council, we welcome the information.
AY PAC enthusiastically supports all efforts towards open processes and decision making.
AY PAC just as enthusiastically condemns forced timelines and significant resolutions proposed at the last minute.
Our Mayor, the Mayor Pro-Tem and Ward 1 Council Member Richardson were the only three who advocated for time to allow the public and the many volunteer committee members this would impact to be informed.
AY PAC wonders why none of the other city council members noticed the lack of public notice on a resolution to keep the public informed.
posted by B. Bashert
Transparency Rating (1) - 25%
walk the talk
Transit Riders Thrown Under the Bus
Ypsilanti City Council last night voted overwhelmingly to cut public transit for Ypsilanti citizens. The resolution, written and presented by Council Member Murdock, which has the potential to negatively impact literally THOUSANDS of Ypsilanti transit users on routes 5, 10 and 11, was a “surprise” agenda item that was introduced, discussed AND adopted at a special meeting held the day following the long Labor Day weekend — with no public notice, and virtually no opportunity for Council (let alone the general public) to examine any details.
In a weakly worded diatribe, Council Member Murdock defensively set up his proposal by saying that there may be some future options. Those future options he outlined were a series of ‘if’ statements tacked on top of other qualified ‘if’s. By the time he was done talking he had included possible property tax increases, imagined AATA concessions and potential stimulus funds. It did not sound like a viable plan to the many people who were at the meeting asking to maintain current public transit levels. It does not sound like a viable plan to AY PAC.
Murdock’s proposal, seconded and supported by Lois Richardson, opened with the following:
“Whereas the City Council of the City of Ypsilanti believes that public transportation is a core service necessary for the community’s economic, social and environmental well being, yet not immune from the City’s financial and economic circumstances
And Whereas the City of Ypsilanti is strongly committed to providing public transportation to the residents of the City of Ypsilanti”…
He went on propose to cut Route 5 completely from the city, shorten each day’s service by one hour for Route 10 and Route 11. The above statements truly sounded like empty platitudes by the time he was done.
List of ironies:
- Murdock was heavily involved and a leader of ‘Keep Ypsi Rollin’, an organization formed a few years ago to protect public transit in our fair city. Now he is the author of a severe cut in services.
- Murdock’s proposal, supported by everyone that was present on city council with the exception of Mayor Schreiber, also includes a potential tax increase for home owners. In the past, he positioned himself as a strong opponent of the income tax. Apparently, increasing taxes is OK if he proposes it.
- In 2007, the anti-income tax leaders assured all the residents that public transit was not at risk. Today, they craft the proposal to cut service and raise taxes. It boggles the mind.
It appeared to citizens that little or no effort had been made to look at ways the city could maintain these routes and services. Council spent most of the meeting pointing fingers at AATA rather than looking at the city budget. Having personally attended the budget sessions when public transit was discussed, I can tell you that action by the City wasn’t considered then, either. So in two instances now, Council has only demonstrated a willingness to point their fingers and shake their heads. Our city council, both individually and collectively, knows how to say the right thing often enough. Still, when it came time for them to step up the plate and take action in regards to public transit, they failed miserably.
Ypsilanti City Council: talks the talk, but does not walk the walk.
posted by B. Bashert