Council should be more open to public input

Wow, who would have thought that after the “mandate” given to the “Gang of 5” last November in the Spokane Valley City Council election, we would see so many articles, letters, conflicting opinions and visceral reactions to comments? Makes one reminisce about the city of Spokane Council dramas of the early 2000s. However, there is a significant difference. The public is much more involved in the debate about the direction our city is taking and the behavior of council members.

The important point is that we have experienced vigorous debate, which is exactly what we should have if we are to make the city of Spokane Valley a better place to live and work. The players in this game should not complain about being depicted by critics or the press as inept, not thorough in their preparation for council meetings or being rude to city staff and each other. Issues do revolve around what council members do and say and how they do their jobs. It’s time we accept that is the way the game is played and deal with it in a civil, constructive manner.

What may help the council members is understanding the math of last November’s election. Less than half of eligible voters in the city voted. The maximum number of votes for contested races was just barely 25 percent of the eligible voters. One should expect reaction with these types of margins.

Those of us who have been critical should recognize a couple of positives that have taken place since Jan. 1. The most significant is the commitment by the council to review, section by section, the Sprague Appleway Revitalization Plan. This review should allow needed changes to be affected to the plan. No one ever said the plan would stand the test of time as written, but we did agree that as conditions change, the plan must change.

This careful analysis will also give new council members the opportunity to learn how and why provisions were made. The most important requirement of this review is that all of the council members be objective in their analysis and not allow personal bias to interfere with their decisions. That is the correct way to govern.

Another positive has been the council’s reconsideration of the Broadway restriping project. It has always been my opinion that Broadway Avenue has an intersection problem, not a lane problem. The statistics for the improvement in avoiding accidents on the restriped portion of Broadway do not prove restriping makes a significant difference. There are still too many accidents at intersections. Why would restriping help on the balance of Broadway?

I hope the City Council will embrace and learn what a vigorous debate regimen can provide to city government. Rejecting out of hand comments and suggestions just because they don’t agree with one’s opinions is not the way a government should operate.