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Quote of the Day
February 2nd, 2012, 3:41 pm · 8 Comments · posted by Daniel Chacon
Mayor Steve Bach, who pledged transparency when he was running for office, held a closed-door meeting Thursday with regional leaders in what is being called the Pikes Peak Region Mayors Caucus.
Bach said he got the idea after attending the Denver Metro Mayors Caucus.
Unlike Bach’s meeting, however, officials in Denver aren’t afraid to let the sunshine in.
Catherine Kearney Marinelli, principal of Civic Results and the director of policy and programs for the Denver Metro Mayors Caucus, said Denver’s meetings are open to the public.
“We often have a number of people sitting around the outskirts of the table. Only mayors sit at the table because it’s really intended to be an opportunity for them to have a dialogue about whatever pressing issues they’ve decided to address on the agenda. But we do have visitors in the room quite often and sometimes members of the press.”
So, will future meetings be open to the public?
The answer is maybe yes, maybe no.
Here’s what Chief Communications Officer Cindy Aubrey said in an email:
“In the press release you will see that this was a “get acquainted” meeting with the mayors from around the region. In the meeting, they had a discussion about whether or not this was going to be a useful, productive get together. Mayor Bach, having attended the Denver Metro Mayor’s Caucus, thought that this same kind of gathering could be a good idea for our region.
After the group discusses the format, whether or not they will be public and the frequency of the meetings, I will let you know. This is a brand new idea for our region – still working out all of the details.”
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As the City Hall reporter, I'll be blogging about the ins and outs of Colorado Springs city government. I'll be the first to admit that government can be a little boring, but I'll try to keep my blog fun, interesting and informative.
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Denver’s mayor and City Council meet every Tuesday morning to communicate with one another. Every week vs once a month? Which one do you think is more effective for getting things done.
We basically do not have the level of sophistication required to meet the needs of a city and county this size.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkWxwAaJhmY
Oh look! Debutante Lisa shows up and, instead of concentrating on the her job, chooses to publicly bash the mayor in an online forum. Yes; this truly is the model of sophistication and class that we’ve come to expect from today’s politician. Thank you for being COS’s poster child for back-of-the-room, chicken politicians.
Lisa, do you honestly believe that you appear cool/hip/whatever-other-adjective-grabs-your-fancy by flaunting around the internet, pretending to be on the side of your constituents? If you spent a *fraction* of the energy you spend on Daniel’s blog/Facebook/etc. toward actually trying to make your community better, I wonder what would happen.
I’m guessing that I’ll continue to wonder. I highly doubt you’ll grow some principle anytime soon.
And Daniel – once more, you seem to confuse transparency with an all-hands pass. The mayor’s promise of transparency doesn’t grant you the ability to get whatever info you want, whenever you want it. I know that over time, repeatedly hearing this will (hopefully) get you to understand…but until that time, allow me to point it out once again.
I am glad to see Mayor Bach taking considered measures to improve governance. This sounds like a good idea that holds a lot of promise, but with the devil being in the details, so to speak, it would certainly be irresponsible to throw open initial exploratory meetings.
Saul, I seriously believe you need that bolt of lightening to strike you on your way to Damascus, like you namesake, so you can see the light. I have the utmost respect for Lisa and Daniel for exposing the truth of what Mayor Bach is attempting to pull off behind closed doors. The latest casualty of Mayor Bach’s “Transparent Administration” is Deputy Chief of Staff, Nancy Johnson. I had the pleasure of attending and participating with Ms. Johnson in many a City Council meeting and she was truly an asset to the City. I am quite certain Bach will select another volunteer from his campaign or someone else equally less qualified to take her place. I don’t know where this train-wreck is headed, but I am quite certain there will be more talented casualties along the way. Wake up and smell the stench Saul!
Saul:
transparency : something transparent
transparent : free from pretense or deceit, characterized by visibility or accessibility of information especially concerning business practices
These definitions do not have set limits about the amount of transparency. They do not state there is an ability to pick and choose what information will be given for public consumption. King Bach stated he would have a transparent city government but I have only seen backroom deals, closed meetings, ranting emails and hiring his election lackeys to fill non-posted, non-competitive positions.
Several of the regions Mayors are part of the PPACG board.