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June 3, 2004
Free Speech or Responsible Speech?
A column by Ken Sapp
In a recent column, Suzette Christopher commented about how Ron West's opportunity to express his views was curtailed at a recent City Council meeting. I agree with Christopher that West should have been allowed to speak long enough to clarify his intent. While Councilman Whitson may have thought he knew West's motives, he probably erred by anticipating the content or intent of his remarks.
Christopher may be equally guilty of speculation by presuming the motivation for of Whitson's objections. She does mention, however that she read West's comments prior to his presentation. With this knowledge and her speculation of Councilman Whitson's motives, was she suggesting that West intended to accuse the city of secretly borrowing $40 million to build a regional health, recreation and conference center? If so, and such a serious accusation would have been politically motivated and in violation of the rules governing Citizen presentations. Christopher's or West's clarification his presentation content and intent would eliminate any speculation on that account.
On the other hand, some knowledge that these city amenities are linked to the Tax Increment Financing District
(TIF) associated with Home Town could clarify misunderstandings. The Home Town TIF dates back some time and is by no means a secret conspiracy.
An important point of understanding is that planning for growth of a city of 60,000 is a long range process and requires the council and employees to anticipate projects many years into the future. These long time horizons are not well understood and passage of an item with voter approval does not mean construction begins immediately. When an issue is approved by the voters, the city typically has the desecration to "fund" these projects at some future date when city budget can match project cost and city revenue.
The key point of the column is to illustrate that the strained rhetoric from the recent campaign may have caused both factions to assume negative intent on behalf of the other party and improperly assign motives. I encourage all individuals to reflect on this tendency before leaping to conclusions.
On a positive note, I congratulate Mayor Trevino for his demeanor during the May 24 council meeting and the courtesy he extended to the new council members. This is a positive step, allowing more latitude in citizen presentations could be a good second one. As I have stated repeatedly, disagreement is not the issue, it is the perceived tone that is destructive.
Greater understanding of how city government works and increased citizen communication is a desirable and achievable goal. Periodic Town Hall meetings should be considered to provide a dialogue on matters germane to the long term vision and issues facing
NRH. A good first installment would be a session on the Senior Tax Freeze. Residents should have the opportunity to hear all sides of the story and the regular business meetings of the council probably are not the best forum.
As an added comment, all citizens are welcome to attend City Council and Commission meetings. If they cannot attend, they can view them on Charter channel 7. Perception is very often much different from reality. It is in the eye of the beholder, so you be the judge.
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