Last week was extraordinary in many ways.
On Monday the 18th of June, I was fortunate to be a fly on the wall in a citizens meeting with some real heavyweights in Kingman. Many were concerned about the present and future of the city that I'm sure all in attendance love to call home. That meeting should be held again with roughly the same cast of characters (and probably some others who weren't there) again sometime in the future, maybe even on some regular basis.
Later that evening at the City Council meeting, I thought the members of council did a nice job on the whole in response to earlier meetings that got slightly out of hand. To me it was the kind of performance that should be the standard for such public meetings with elected leaders present.
I also was moved when the founder of the local community group RAID, publicly stated for the first time that they were NOT against the proposed traffic interchange near Kingman Crossing. Of course there will still be differences in opinion as to what the city should do with its lands on the south side of the Interstate near Kingman Crossing, and it is something I can respect. I think a healthy public debate on the subject of the city lands will be just what the doctor would order to help cure some relationships among city and community leaders. When the votes are tallied, all sides should honor the will of the voters.
On Tuesday night there was a new community group formed that goes by the name of CIVIC. This group has some lofty challenges but their timing couldn't be better given all the rhetoric flying through town currently. This group will offer a real chance for anyone to become more informed on many topics that are being debated on in Kingman. The group will also promote community involvement and voter participation. Two items that Kingman sorely needs.
Last Wednesday I turned myself in to the March of Dimes and did my time. I can't thank everyone who helped raise 'bail' money enough. I may not have met my goal entirely but there is always next year.
On Thursday the Government Affairs Committee made some recommendations to KGVAR's Board of Directors on public positions that the Association may take on current local political events. The recommendations were passed on to the Membership for final approval. If everything goes as expected the local REALTORS Association will begin to get active publicly on key political issues for the first time since I've joined the Association. This has been a goal of mine for a few years now (while in leadership) and hopefully it will become a standard of practice for the future leaders of KGVAR.
Last Friday is when I first read the column and on Saturday I responded to a quote attributed to a local City Council member. I admit that when I first read the quote I was very hot under the collar and I'm glad I waited until Saturday to respond. In the back of my mind I wondered if the quote was in full context and wanted to offer some benefit of doubt. However I said what I said and I'll man up to it with one exception.
It was wrong to publicly question the councilman's leadership the way I did. While I didn't vote for him last year, I do see him at meetings asking questions on topics in a manner to make sure he has all the information he needs to make a decision. I may still disagree with his conclusions at times, but I should respect that he is an elected leader and he is making the best assessments he can for what he believes. Two wrongs indeed do not make a right.
I'm sure the 'six monkeys poisoning the city' comment didn't sit well with the Council Members last week and the sensitivity meter is nearly redlining. There has been unfortunate things said publicly over the last month and hopefully we'll all find a more mature way to handle our disagreements going forward.
The good news about last week though was the discussion. More discussion by more informed groups will lead to clear choices that a voter can make.
The new community group CIVIC gives us all a chance to get our feet wet with the important issues that face Kingman, not to guide your decision but to inform you to make your own conclusion.
The public statement offered by RAID means that all the differing groups can have a meaningful dialog on the topics of the day if they choose to (I'm sort of guilty of not seeking out this kind of dialog, other than on this blog -- I'll do better from here on out). We really do have to respect each other enough to at least listen to the others and hopefully form a direction that is actually best for the community.
The city leaders are actively engaged in the discussion from what I've seen. Again at the last meeting the leaders performed well and made reasoned decisions from lengthy discussions amongst themselves, city staff, and the public.
There is still plenty to monitor going forward. The voices are being heard and I see hope that groups like RAID, CIVIC, KGVAR, the 'good old boys', out of town developers, and the city can begin to work together in a public fashion so that the community feels involved and empowered. It isn't a hopeless form of government, though without strong community involvement, it can be.
Thanks to everyone for stepping up in recent times.
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