August 11, 2008
submitted
Anyone who has experienced proceedings of the Fernley City Council must be dissatisfied with the repeated agenda items that keep coming back again and again related to the City Manager's contract. These dedicated observers are dissatisfied with Mayor Cutler and City Council for allowing repeated discussion on the same subject with the same results over and over again. The City Council is essentially allowing one of its members to filibuster in hopes of changing the votes previously cast (and very recently cast) on the same subject.
The City Council received training on "Speaking With One Voice" and other methods to effectively and efficiently conduct the City's business. The City Council is failing to "Speak With One Voice" and failing to effectively and efficiently conduct the City's business. Only the City Council members can correct their egregious behavior.
We all know it is election season and it is easy for individuals to behave irrationally. This is no excuse for ineffectively and inefficiently conducting City business. We also know it is convenient to find a scapegoat when economic conditions decline and special interest groups vociferously lobby for the City to correct perceived problems. The attempt to use the City Manager as a scapegoat for the failure of the City Council and Mayor to function is disgraceful.
It doesn't matter whether the City Council fires the City Manager, whether the City Manager quits and finds a better job, or whether the City Manager remains in the position. It does matter that the citizens of Fernley are short-changed because the Mayor is too egotistical to comprehend his power and use his power effectively. It does matter that the City Council fails to perform and fails to police itself when failures occur.
Firing the City Manager is not going to result in the disappearance of existing problems. Any action regarding the City Manager is clearly scapegoating and will not result in more effective and more efficient provision of City services. This can only occur when the Mayor and City Council pull their respective heads out of the sand and professionally perform their duties.
Mayor and City Council: Please, cut the crap! Quit the endless agenda items related to the City Manager and concentrate on substantive issues. Use the resources on the myriad of real issues facing the City and tell the special interest group to cease and desist the blatant back room lobbying. The silent majority is sick of the unfair, inefficient and ineffective use of City resources just so a few egotists and special interest groups can tee off on the City Manager for their own failures.
Submitted by
Rodney Garfield
