Ancient relics, no chickens
Props are great in council chambers, and this week’s Missoula City Council meeting yielded at least two. I remember a few years ago when someone whipped out a pair of handcuffs to protest an SID. Then, there was the man who wore a giant chicken suit during the chicken wars.
(Those meetings? “Bock you.” “No. Bock YOU.” Just kidding. But they were fun.)
This week, Public Works director Steve King rolled an old section of water main into council chambers. It looked kind of like a small cannon, but it was made of wood and wire coiled around it.
King said it was “crafted with care” and pulled out of the ground in the 1990s. It’s an artifact at the Historical Museum at Fort Missoula, but he borrowed it to show it to the council.
“It’s really a cool piece of civil engineering history,” he said.
Reason for the prop? King said a couple weeks ago, Will Snodgrass accused engineers of mucking up water lines in the Rattlesnake during work on the sewer project. Snodgrass isn’t a fan of sewer, and much more on that here.
Anyway, King didn’t argue that water service was “being disrupted.” He said engineers know it’s going to happen during those projects and it’s normal.
“This is not to say the project is not challenging,” he said.
Snodgrass had a different point this week. He wanted to know why ‘Snakers who weren’t hooked up were getting a “specious” “non-compliance” letter from the city.
Councilman Ed Childers said sometimes the things Snodgrass says resonate, but in this case, maybe the wording just needs to be tweaked ’cause “non-compliance” startles people.
Councilwoman Pam Walzer said she’s glad the city sends people a letter telling them that if they move, they need to pay for hooking into sewer. Friends of hers bought a home thinking it was connected to sewer lines — but it wasn’t.
Councilman Dick Haines, on the other hand, told the mayor he wants the recurring accusations by Snodgrass to be put to bed one way or the other. He figured it was time to “refuse him” or figure out of he’s telling the truth.
“I think it’s gone on too long,” Haines said.
Mayor John Engen said the city addresses correspondence from the public, and the city attorney is reviewing a recent related letter. He also said Haines is free to make a referral, but not every allegation deserves a response.
“Some merits that, some doesn’t,” Engen said.
(As I write this post, I’m also willing my phone to ring. I need a call from Municipal Court. Maybe the second I hit “publish,” it will ring.)
The other prop was a resume. That evening, Councilwomen Stacy Rye and Lyn Hellegaard battled for the appointment to the Transportation Policy and Coordinating Committee.
When Hellegaard made her pitch, she pulled up her resume, one pages and pages long. It wasn’t enough to convince the majority, though.
A couple councilors said there’s no doubt in their minds Hellegaard is knowledgeable, the most experienced among them in the field of transportation.
“I’m fully impressed with Lyn’s credentials,” said Councilman Bob Jaffe.
“You don’t have to show your resume at a meeting to get that across,” said Councilwoman Marilyn Marler.
Marler said she also takes into account communication styles. Jaffe said he’s aligned with Rye when it comes to transportation policy. And Councilman Jason Wiener said the strike against Hellegaard is her judgement — not her expertise.
Haines said interviewing both candidates is required. He said there isn’t anyone as qualified as Hellegaard, and he also quibbled with Rye’s background.
“I think your resume is paper thin,” Haines told Rye.
City attorney Jim Nugent said the rules seem to point to interviews, but Councilman Dave Strohmaier said he considers every Monday night and Wednesday the interviews. (Remember when Strohmaier blew a train whistle in council chambers? Another prop.)
At one point, someone called the question to quash the debate and get on with the vote. The motion failed, though, and the conversation continued. In the audience, John Hendrickson stood up and walked out.
“This is ridiculous,” he muttered.
Rye noted her support for a variety of transportation projects, including the Broadway diet and the roundabout at Higgins-Hill-Beckwith. You know how it ends. She got the job. She didn’t even have anything for show and tell.
I miss the chicken man, who was all about the show. Maybe he can come back for Easter and help report on the state of our urban hens. Are they popping out eggs like mad? Are they totally bocking up some neighborhoods?
Signing off, and still willing the phone to ring.
– Keila Szpaller
January 28th, 2010 at 1:41 am
I thought Hellegaard’s delivery of her presentation was the best argument that could be made for voting for Rye. One needs to actually watch and hear her, not simply read the transcript, to appreciate what Marler was talking about.