While it is up to the residents of the First Ward to choose their representative, I do recommend that they check out this week's edition of the Chetek Alert to read each of the candidates responses to the questions that were posed to them. I think their answers are informative on each of the candidate's positions and perspective with regards to serving on the Common Council.
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| If you're still not sure who you will vote for, it's well worth the $1.50 to read the cover story |
Recently, Earl approached me and asked that I state for the record why I removed him as council representative on the Parks Committee. According to him people have asked him why he was “fired” from that committee. Here is my response: It is the mayor's prerogative to appoint council members to the various committees that help the council govern city business. Personnel, Budget, Streets, Economic Development are four that come to mind. In my nine years of service as mayor, I have “changed horses” twice – i.e., replaced existing committee members in favor of another: once for the Ambulance Commission and the second for the Parks committee.
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| We are due to break ground later this spring |
If you have followed the story with the development of the Gotham Park Sports Complex I have from the beginning been very clear about my position: developing this park will be a very good thing and when complete it will be a great addition to the City. With the enthusiasm generated by private citizens from both the city and the neighboring townships to-date over $200 thousand dollars in private funds has been raised. With a goal of $235K it is clear it is going to happen. Over the course of a couple of meetings when he was serving on the Parks Committee, it became clear to me that Earl's perspective on developing the park was at cross-purposes with the other members of the committee. Frequently the meetings would get derailed by contention over the scope and the means to develop the park. By his own words, Earl sees the Gotham Park Sports Complex as a long-term development whereas the rest of the committee was eager to raise the money now.
I therefore made an executive decision to “change horses” in order to keep this project moving forward. If the city can not afford to develop the park, we clearly are in need of private citizens to raise the money. They have and continue to do so and I didn't want the committee members to be discouraged feeling like they were “fighting city hall.”
While it may be semantics what some may call “firing” I simply refer to as reorganizing the committee in such a way to give this project a fighting chance of getting done this year. To his credit, Earl accepted my decision willingly and graciously stepped aside. I then placed Scott on this committee who has been in support of the project from the very beginning.
I wish both Scott and Earl the very best of luck in the election next Tuesday, April 1. Clearly, at the end of the day only one of them will be victorious. I trust the residents of Ward 1 will do what they think is best for their side of town and for the rest of us who call this city home.
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| Ward 1 in blue |
