Accountability in 2007

Council is leading by example: If Council doesn’t enforce the UDO, how can they expect their staff to enforce the UDO?

When Council member Robin Cape was running for election, she was asked by the Mountain Xpress: “City staff have documented several recent cases of developers violating the Unified Development Ordinance or conditions of their permits, but no fines have been issued. Should these rules be more strictly enforced?” [“A Voter’s Guide to the Oct. 11 Election,” Oct. 5]. “Absolutely,” she responded.

Cape told Xpress: “I think that the Maxwell Street use and the Staples signs are wrong. What support I will get on Council to make considerable changes to these issues is yet to be seen.” [“Now What?”, Aug. 16, 2006].

“We need to enforce the ordinances and get the trucks off the street, not micromanage how they do it,” Cape told Xpress [“Keep on Truckin’,” Nov. 29, 2006].

Councilwoman Cape, I do not understand why you never made a motion for a vote. “We need to enforce the ordinances and get the trucks off the street” sounds like a good motion to me. Let’s have a vote and let the chips fall where they may, instead of protecting your chip stack at Council’s table. Let’s put some “sunshine” on the situation, and then the public knows where Council’s support is!

I’m very disappointed. I voted for Change in 2005. I think I may run for Council: Accountability in 2007.

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