What to do about a town like Mountain View?

What do the people of Mountain View want? That is the big question that runs through my mind every time I attend a meeting and then sit down to type up an article.

 

Do they want a solid, operational government -- or do they want a scapegoat? 

 

If you have ever been to a meeting, it’s clear to see that everyone wants to be able to point the finger at one person for all the town’s problems. The thing is -- it’s not any single person’s fault. Most of the fingers are pointing at the mayor, but it takes a board to run the city and make decisions as a group. On most actions, the mayor doesn’t even vote.

 

The current elected aldermen seem to think a city administrator will swoop in and magically fix all the problems that the city government is facing. Let’s face it -- hiring someone with inadequate experience or inadequate abilities is not going to solve that problem or any problem really.

 

Coming from a former alderwoman, what it boils down to is that nothing good will be accomplished with incompetence running amuck and unchecked.

 

And at this point, in my professional opinion, it’s unclear if it’s incompetence or malfeasance. Don’t you think we should be able to tell?

 

I cannot recall how many years it has been since I have seen an aldermen attend actual training for their position. Governing a town is a tall order, and administration after administration of untrained aldermen have shown that this is not a job anyone should be doing off the cuff. Training is easy to obtain and offered by the Missouri Ethics Commission (MEC) every year after an election.

 

Knowing that, one would think the city attorney, who is hired to keep the city running on a legal line, would do the best job possible to steer the board in the right direction. However, the current city attorney seems pleased to simply collect a $90 an hour fee for sitting at meetings --  which have frequently featured violations of Missouri’s Sunshine Law -- without saying a word.

 

Then when aldermen have questions, they rack up more attorneys’ fees by calling and texting her privately.  In the month of January, taxpayers paid over $4,600 for a bill that included several line items billing for attorney/client privileged conversations with the city attorney outside the public eye.

 

Wouldn’t you like to know what they’ve been discussing? So would I. 

 

At this point, I have three suggestions for the stakeholders in Mountain View. 

 

One -- start a petition to obtain an audit from the State Auditor’s Office – or demand that the city itself request one. Municipalities like Mountain View are not on their regular audit schedule, so there has not been a state-level audit since at least 1984, and likely longer. This is a definitive way to learn if where, and BY WHOM, any malfeasance has occurred. The only drawback to this is the City of Mountain View will foot the bill for the state’s work on the audit.

 

Two -- If you want and are willing to run for office then, please, attend more than a handful of meetings before the election. Too many things are covered over the span of a year. Only attending a few meetings cannot give you the perspective you need to properly govern the city. Facebook is not a good way to gather your information. Attend a meeting.

 

Three -- the board of aldermen should pass an ordinance requiring newly elected or appointed aldermen and mayors to attend MEC training. It will cost a lot less for them to attend a training than to get that training in after-hours calls to the city attorney. 

 

The theatrics in Mountain View’s city government simply are not fun anymore. It’s time to take action. If you’re serious about taking back the town, start with these steps.