Where's Gary? Where's Dave? Where's This All Headed?

First ward council member Gary Purnhagen (above right) is the chair of the Public Works Board, a group of people we are relying on to finally fix our dangerous and ugly sidewalks.  Gary did not attend the most recent meeting of the PWB, held this past Monday night.  The chair of the PWB didn't show up in person nor did he show up virtually.  (Was he in a body cast in the hospital?)  The person in charge of the meetings and the board missed a meeting that lasted all of 14 minutes.  Maybe if Gary had showed up it would have lasted all of 17 minutes.  (All joking aside, I hope Gary is okay, though I did see him driving his car on State Street earlier this week.)

But the guy who the city allows to sleep in his beat-up Chevy van parked in the parking lot out back of City Hall did show up in person to the meeting -- as he usually does -- and he had a lot to say at the end of the meeting (all of it of little to no relevance).  If it weren't for him the meeting would have lasted just 10 minutes. 

In attendance were 3 members: the Mayor's Aide, the DPW Commissioner (both in person) and a resident sitting at a desk in his house.  Also in person was the guy from the local engineering firm we are counting on (and paying) to make this Sidewalk Improvement District thing happen prior to the end of the 21st century.  The PWB's webpage shows that city resident Dave Marston is still a member, though he hasn't been seen or heard from since the February meeting.  In fact, his name has not been mentioned during roll call at the past two meetings.  The fact that his name is still on the list of members pretty much says it all, doesn't it?

Here's a HUDseen article from precisely one year ago that shows Marston's usefulness to the PWB, to the city and to our sidewalks: Marston.  He didn't even know what time the PWB's meetings began!

If you can sit through the video of Monday's meeting (hey, it is short!), you'll probably come to the same conclusion I did:  We're screwed!  How far along is the tiny -- and getting tinier -- PWB?  As was discussed at the meeting, the members (will Gary be tagging along?) are hoping to do a "walk around" of the city to figure out the sidewalks that need the most attention, which is supposed to happen before the next meeting on May 27th.  Are they going to walk the entire city?  I hope they all wear helmets and elbow pads.  No high heels!

The following night, this past Tuesday, Gary Purnhagen did not attend April's formal meeting of the Common Council.  He was nowhere to be seen or heard, not in person nor virtually on a screen or even just his voice.  At least one vote had to be adjourned due to his absence.

How about we limit council members to 3 absences over the course of two years before they are shown the door and replaced with someone who wants to get some work done?  Let's face it, if members don't even show up virtually to a meeting, they aren't making an effort and they are impeding the city's important work and progress.  They are getting paid and getting very good health coverage to show up, particularly those members who are chairs of committees or boards!