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Council comment
Dear Editor,
I would like to comment on the City Council meeting I attended last night and the behavior of one of our councilmen and our city manager.
The case at hand was the promotion of "comfortable" for the city auditorium. Missy Nelson and a small group have taken this monumental project upon themselves and have worked diligently to raise the funding. The idea behind it is to make seating in the auditorium more comfortable and in return, encourage more events at the auditorium.
When this idea was first initiated, Missy and the core group went to the City Council for approval of the project and stated that they intended to raise the money, and did not request any funding from the city. While out campaigning for this project, the comment was made by many people that they felt it was the city's responsibility to fund this, as it is a city facility.
The group considered the public opinion and decided to go back before the council and request some funding. Missy was the spokesperson and presented her request with great finesse. She was then challenged in a very demeaning way. I have never witnessed such an unprofessional, despicable display as I saw from one of our councilmen. He attacked everything she said and his demeanor was atrocious. I became so angry about the way he was treating her I had all I could do to stay in my seat and found myself wanting to fight fire with fire. It certainly brought out my defenses.
I think this man has a huge, self-inflated ego, and I am not sure what his intent was, but he was so emotional he was red-faced and had bulging veins and seemed to delight in trying to make her look foolish. It was as though he had her on trial for a severe defense. This type of treatment would certainly deter most people from appearing before the council. This is not the first time I've experienced this type of authoritarian behavior from this individual, when going to the council with a request. If the request cannot be granted, then simply state it without all the other ruthless rhetoric.
We have a city whose population is dwindling, and businesses are closing and struggling to exist. Then we have a young woman full of enthusiasm, going forward and spending endless hours trying to raise money to make our auditorium a more appealing center for gatherings. She has a passion for McCook and its survival. We all know when we can attract people to McCook it brings in much-needed revenue for all our businesses. You would thin that this council member would be a support and encouragement for a young person who not only chooses to stay in this community, but is out investing her time and energy to improve it. If I had stood in Missy's shoes, I would have said "Forget it; I don't need this type of harassment and verbal abuse."
However, Miss has a faith that goes beyond the battering she received last night, and she will persevere until the end.
I would like to comment on our Councilman Aaron Kircher, who is only 24 years old. He is a very up-and-coming young man and in a very professional and gentle manner, succeeded in putting the council person in his place. Also, great encouragement and support came from Jim Kenny, Bill Longnecker and Mayor Berry. I have not attended a City Council meeting for some time, and had not seen this council in action. I feel we have four very proficient men serving us. However, I would encourage everyone to attend a City Council meeting so you can first-hand observe the performance of our council members, so you can make a wise voting decision next election.
Corky Krizek,
Mama Bear
McCook