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| Still Too Many Committees! 12/26/2007 Still Too Many Committees!
Astute readers may conclude from past editorial opinions of the Beacon that we are alarmed on several accounts about the proliferation of busybody commissions at City Hall.
First, it was the creation of an assortment of ineffective committees that has led to slow but costly leaks in our tiny ship of state. One pricey example out of many was the Economic & Business Development Committee, which existed for five or six years and was a complete letdown. During its existence, the EBDC failed miserably in its task to attract jobs and business to the community, luring absolutely nada. Its exact cost to the taxpayers and residents of Depoe Bay would be difficult to establish given the obscurity of the city budget, but any committee that is nurtured with expensive staff support, meeting rooms and electricity for numerous night sessions will surely cost several thousand dollars a year just to keep it on the books — money that could be put to better use on streets, parks and public safety.Second, the City lacks the depth in its citizen pool to furnish these groups — more than 80 seats, in all — with enough independent, fair-minded people who have time on their hands and are free of business and family entanglements with other committee members. The Harbor Commission, in this respect, comes to mind. Finally, the sheer quantity of these numerous knitting circles opens the door to professional busybodies, do-gooders and troublemakers. Being on what should be the rare city committee in Depoe Bay ought to be a high-status job; not everyone with a pulse should be appointed. Certainly the practice of appointing some people to multiple commissions should cease — if not for their sanity, then for ours. By the same reasoning, husbands and wives or family members should not serve on the same commissions. We implore the City Council to use the opening months of 2008 to review the status of the town’s copious committees with an eye towards reducing the size of existing commissions such as Harbor, Parks and Planning from seven members to five. Committee heads should be summoned to City Hall, where they would be required make a full public report to the Council on any achievements in 2007 and their plan of action for the next 12 months. Committees whose time is up such as the runaway Near Shore Action Team or the well-meaning Emergency Preparedness Committee should be disbanded, though not without the usual letters of appreciation. Three years ago Mayor Jim White pledged to sweep City Hall if elected and in many important ways he has kept his promise. But as any homemaker knows, housecleaning is a never-ending task. Please, Jim, get out your broom again — the cobwebs and dirt are starting to return! Author Name Depoe Bay Beacon - news@depoebaybeacon.com |
