William G. Faust Jr. is a resident of Dover.
It is very ironic that our Dover leaders have no trouble communicating that they need to pass on increases to the residents of the city. They use phrases like it needs to be done to ensure safety, that we are cheaper than other cities surrounding Dover and that it’s the cost of doing business. The pattern is there. It is the third year in a row that they have passed increases onto the constituents to balance and pass the yearly budget.
Who are the mayor and council trying to fool? If they do not take serious action now to stem the tide of passing on costs, we can expect next year’s budget will contain more fees or other types of increases to balance the budget. Mrs. Sharon Duca and the financial department can only do so much! If the mayor and council do not listen, we, the taxpayers, will pay once again when next year’s budget is proposed and worked on.
Let’s keep it real: This new budget only helps keep the lights on and ensure that our hardworking city workers get paid and have their healthcare plans paid for. There is nothing in this newly passed budget that will improve services or improve safety. Our currently approved budget just holds the line, if we are lucky.
Here is the ironic twist! When citizens have questions and concerns, they never get answered in a timely fashion. If you attend any council meetings, the key department heads cannot answer any questions unless Council President Fred Neil allows them to speak. It is like a small child asking permission to do something. It is so sad that our city is run this way. If a department head is allowed to answer the question that is being asked, he or she does not have the information to answer the questions at hand. Note: Laptop computers are present at all the council meetings. With computers, most information should be easily found.
Since the public forum is not recorded, many questions are asked repeatedly, and the citizens of Dover or visitors rarely get answers unless the topic is a hot issue, and the mayor and council are trying to do damage control. This has resulted in the news media and citizens filing Freedom of Information Act requests to get answers to basically easy questions that would only take a few minutes to answer.
The lame excuse that they do not have any time to answer questions is because the item is not on the agenda for the night. Council President Neil sets the agenda for the council meetings but never puts on the agenda of the next meeting the items citizens have inquired about. This is convenient to help sidestep issues that the city does not want to address.
If I remember correctly, the elected officials work for the citizens. However, it appears that many on City Council forget this important item.
I encourage all citizens to come out to our council meetings and observe how city business is being conducted.
Remember, if you do not educate yourself or vote in the upcoming elections, you have no right to complain about how the city is run. The time to get involved in our city is now!
This is submitted by a very concerned citizen.
Reader reactions, pro or con, are welcomed at civiltalk@iniusa.org.
