Kumbaya, James Madison and Interested Men...It Matters

There are particular moments in public affairs when the people stimulated by some irregular passion, or some illicit advantage, or misled by the artful misrepresentations of interested men, may call for measures which they themselves will afterwards be the most ready to lament.
                                         -James Madison, The Federalist No. 63



After the thunder and lightning of this city’s politics throughout much of 2010, that whiff of kumbaya-scented incense floating down Pine Avenue of late is, to many, a relief. Mayor Selby has held to pre-election promises of bridge building and consensus seeking, to the snickering delight of some, the quiet chagrin of others and the reluctanct self-loathing acquiescence of the Fourth Estate. But, hey, he’s got the sides talking like he said he’d do and that is worthy of a sincere pat on the back.

Holiday gatherings and the spirit of the season have imbued a sense of camaraderie, real or imagined, among the elected, the electors and, inevitably, those who seek to manipulate both. And a week from today, the P&Z Board will be back at it, discussing yet another new parking ordinance on Pine Avenue and the manipulators will be front and center. In this context, “manipulator” is not necessarily a derogatory term. We all manipulate others in our lives in some form or another by negotiating, controlling or influencing to our advantage (Come on, admit it. Who went out to get the paper when it was 35° this morning and how was that decision made? Hmm?). The point is this: yes, it’s been relatively peaceful since the election and that’s a good thing but the elephant, Pine Avenue parking, is still in the room. And so are those “interested men.”

But a funny thing happened on the way here.


Back in August you will recall we reported HERE that the infamous Chapter 91, a parking ordinance written by City Planner Alan Garrett, visualized by then-citizen architect Gene Aubry and courted like a cotillion debutante by PAR, was nixed after months of discussion. The message from the hundreds of signatures on the Citizens Initiative Committee’s petition was loud and clear: ceding the public rights-of-way to development interests, as Chapter 91 and its fans sought to do, was simply not the will of the people. Garrett was instructed by the City Commission to concentrate on strengthening the current law, Chapter 90, and its emphasis on on-site parking with language from the Citizens Initiative petition.

That never happened.

However, Garrett did rewrite a parking ordinance, one now referred to as Chapter X and destined to be the next deb on the Commission’s dance card, but Citizens Initiative language is nowhere in sight and the proposed law is effectively Chapter 91 arisen phoenix-like from the ashes of its August burial. Granted, legislative realities here in little ol’ Anna Maria have, to say the least, taken a significant turn since then and, save a veto from bridge-building Mayor Selby or an epiphany of conscience from a commissioner in the majority, the law will be passed in some form suitable to those “interested men” James Madison so eloquently referenced in The Federalist No.63. It is inevitable folks. Like we said over a year ago, elections have consequences.

But that’s not the point.

What happened to Chapter 90? We have an existing parking ordinance, one all agree is in need of tweaks and polishing but one that conforms to the demands of the Comp Plan. Where was the discussion of these tweaks and polishing? Until August, the City Commission, behind the steady gavel of John Quam, and the P&Z, led by the honorable Randall Stover until his unfortunate death, may he rest in peace, kept the focus on the shiny and slick proposed Chapter 91 and off of the existing and effective Chapter 90. Throughout that first half of 2010 Commissioner Woodland repeatedly questioned the need for an iffy Chapter 91 when a suitable Chapter 90 was already on the books and, importantly, is proven Comp Plan compliant. His persistent attempts to get the needed Chapter 90 tweaks on the agenda were stymied at every turn.

Commissioner Woodland was frustrated to say the least. Then out of nowhere Commissioner Quam summarily buried Chapter 91 in August and Garrett was instructed by legislative mandate (Commission directive) to tweak Chapter 90 and bring it back a few weeks later. Again, it never happened. So where was the effort by the Commission, pursuant to its own mandate, to polish Chapter 90? Commissioner Woodland again waited patiently, meeting after frustrating meeting, since August, to debate and discuss such language but was never given the opportunity to do so. Instead, like an old rerun of the sitcom Bewitched, some Pine Avenue genie crinkles a nose and blinks and ding! …Chapter X appears with no apparent legislative or executive mandate and now serious questions of Comp Plan compliance will once again bubble unnecessarily to the surface. Why? How? Who?

Yes, elections have consequences. But whether the voters have been “stimulated by some irregular passion, or some illicit advantage, or misled by the artful misrepresentations of interested men,” one hopes those who once challenged Chapter 91 do not “lament” failing to challenge Chapter X for similar reasons, either before it passes or, if necessary, afterward. At a minimum the voters are entitled to a debate of why Chapter X is even necessary and to a significant discussion of just why the heck Chapter 90 is no longer good enough.

So show up next Tuesday and ask the P&Z to explain its role. And ask your commissioners and Mayor as well. They need to hear from you, again. It matters.

All the best for the New Year.

And stay informed.

Bill Yanger