Councilman's Column by Jesse Alber

Held to a Higher Standard At first glance of the City Council Agenda, it usually appears that a good deal of business is conducted each month. This months agenda consisted of 20 plus items of business which took over four hours to address. I speculate, however, that at least 1/3 of these items of business will reappear on next months agenda. Some items that really could have used prompt attention will have to wait until next month while more research is conducted or proper notices are provided. I often get frustrated with the pace at which government, at all levels, works. At this month's meeting, I felt that a recurring question continued to surface throughout several items of business. Is it appropriate to hold certain members of the community to a higher standard based upon the business that they run or the position that they hold? Should a business be held to a higher standard than the community at large because its operation requires special licensing? Should our Mayor be held to a higher standard on issues of municipal code because of the position she holds? How about council members? Should owners of certain breeds of dogs be held to a higher standard of care than other pet owners? To some extent, I feel that the recall election on August 18 addresses this question. Councilman Andy Alber most likely wrote and said some things that the majority of the community would consider inappropriate for an individual in his position. But, had Andy not held a seat on the Council, I doubt little would have ever been mentioned about his comments. Andy is being held to a higher standard on this issue due to his position. The Council recommended approval of the liquor license for Klancy's Kafe with only modest discussion. As was the case two years ago, I was the only dissenting vote on this issue. I do not believe the fox should be given the keys to the chicken coop. With the recommended approval, I am confident that Kevin is NOT being held to a higher standard in this case. The council has had ordinances in place for years which require the licensing of cats and dogs with the city office. However, there is more than one member of the current council that is a pet owner and has never licensed their pet. This ordinance has never been enforced and probably about 90% of the pet owners in our community have never registered their pets either. But, here we have a situation where the council does not set the example and the members are not held to a higher standard. City ordinance states that any vehicle parked on the street for more than a 24 hour period is an illegally parked vehicle. Vehicles parked with the driver's side to the curb, are also illegally parked vehicles. Vehicle's parked on the city right of way without proper licensing are also in violation. However, our Mayor has a vehicle that sits for weeks at a time on the street in front of her home without being moved. This same vehicle had expired tags for several months while it was parked on the street before they were renewed. I and other council members have been guilty of parking on the wrong side of the street on more than one occassion. No harm, no foul. Another example of not being held to a higher standard. For those of you who wish to hold me to a higher standard, I am sure I will fail miserably. I could do more work around the yard to keep it neat. I should water and mow my grass more often. I need to finish my fence and egress window. I should attend Community Club meetings and church services more regularly. I should see that my son's dog is properly licensed. I shouldn't park on the east side of the street facing south. I should loose some weight. I should be more patient. And, definately, I should have been a better kid when growing up. But the fact is, we place a good deal of faith in certain members of our community. We trust our banker to safeguard our finances, our grocer to sell us fresh, safe and quality foods, our doctor to keep us and our family healthy, our teachers to educate and care for our kids, our mechanic to keep us on the road, and, of course, our elected representatives to be good stewards of our resources and to prepare our community for growth and vitality. However, trust is typically earned; not granted, and trust can be lost quite easily. Because we have so much vested in our banker, grocer, doctor, teacher, mechanic, city council, and even our bar tender, it is just human nature to want to hold them to a higher standard than we hold others or even ourselves. Just meeting the bare minimum is not enough to maintain that trust. If they fail to meet this higher standard, they will probably loose our trust. Once trust is lost, it is very difficult to re-establish. Once we loose faith, problems are bound to persist. So, in order to maintain that trust, our choices are to lower our standards, or to select individuals who can meet the higher standards we set and replace those who do not. (Hence, recall elections.) We should not have unrealistic expectations but beware of the risks of lowering our standards and the challenges of meeting them.