THE VIEW FROM MAIN STREET This week, I experienced the city through the eyes of children, as my two grandchildren, Gabe and Grace, were visiting from St. Paul. What I learned is that Ashland has wonderful parks and play areas for kids and that the Vaughn Library is a kid-friendly resource with a variety of interesting activities for all ages. The library is one of our best used resources in the city. This week, I want to try to answer a question about why it can sometimes take so long for decisions to get made at Ashland City Hall. For now, I will focus on the process of getting approval for new business start-ups or changes and/or improvements to existing businesses. We would all love for our city to run as efficiently as a well run business. As much as we like to believe otherwise, sometimes it is apparent that a city is not exactly business-like. This is because city government is accountable to all its citizens. When there are more than 8,000 people living in a community, that can make for a lot of diverse competing interests. As Mayor, on any given day I hear opinions from all sides of all kinds of issues. One of the things I love about Ashland citizens is their strong sense of attachment to this place and their willingness to express their opinions about how things should be with the city. Political discussions often lead to talk about the “common good” and doing what is in the best interest of the community. Responsible public servants all seek to do that, but it isn’t always as easy as it seems. Often, it is a careful balancing act trying to find middle ground while at the same time knowing that it isn’t always possible to make everyone happy. The same differences between us as individuals that make us an interesting community can also create opportunities for conflict when our world views collide. Democracy is a messy business. One of the things that distinguishes a city from a business is the process that has been established for making big decisions. We have a city council elected from 11 different wards or sections of the city, each charged with an equal amount of decision making power. Just as with city residents, our city councilors are also a diverse bunch, each of whom cares deeply about the future of Ashland and tries their best to make responsible decisions. Whether or not approval is given for a new project or improvement is largely determined by how well it complies with the city’s Comprehensive Plan. Written in 2004 and adopted by the city council, the Comprehensive Plan is the vision that lays the groundwork for all development and planning. Specific city laws or ordinances that have been passed by the city council are spelled out in the municipal code, a/k/a the “U.D.O.” Using the metaphor of building a house, the Comprehensive Plan is like the blueprint or broad outline and the UDO is like the specs for completing the details of the planned building. The process for approval that has been established by the city council starts with an application to the planning dept., located on the second floor of city hall. The planning dept. meets with a business owner and determines if a proposed plan is generally consistent with the city’s comprehensive plan and the UDO. Oftentimes, the uniqueness of a proposed plan does not specifically fall into categories spelled out in the Comprehensive Plan or the UDO and can be subject to interpretation. Sometimes, the city attorney is consulted at this stage in the process for help in interpreting the ordinance. After careful review, the planning dept. makes a recommendation to the planning commission, a committee of citizens appointed by the mayor. The commission acts as a screening agency with legal requirements to carefully consider potential projects, hold public hearings, and screen applications. In Ashland, the Planning Commission meets generally once or twice a month on Tuesday evening. If an application is approved by the Planning Commission, it is generally then sent to the next Committee of the Whole a/k/a “COW” meeting. The “COW” is comprised of all city council members and meets twice a month following the city council meetings. This is the first opportunity for elected officials to weigh in and debate an issue. Especially when the issue is controversial, the debate at the COW meeting can be extensive as councilors attempt to consider all points of view and reach consensus on whether or not to approve the application. After discussion and voting at the COW meeting, the issue is next sent to the following City Council meeting two weeks later for final approval. If the vote at the COW was unanimous among the councilors, the matter will be placed on the consent agenda at the beginning of the meeting and voted on without debate. If there was less than unanimity in the vote, the matter will be considered after additional debate and discussion. Either way, a decision is made by the city council after two meetings. This is the general process and is intended to take two months. The Mayor and the City Council President have the ability to deviate from the general process if a matter is considered urgent. Why does it have to take so long? The main reason given is that it provides a careful process that allows for consideration of competing interests with ample opportunity for public input and the ability of elected representatives to sort out the thorny issues using the best information available. The goal is solid decision making at the end of the process that can be deemed in the general public interest. Is that goal always achieved? Of course not. We live in an imperfect world. It is the process we currently have. That is it for this week. Until next time, enjoy the good old summertime and don’t forget the Concert in the Park at Pearson Plaza behind City Hall, Sunday, August 3, 2014, starting at 2 p.m. Bring your own lawn chair and shade. Be well and stay in touch. Mayor Deb Lewis
Posted on: Thu, 31 Jul 2014 17:53:12 +0000
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