Another really short council meeting last Monday evening. Nine action items were disposed of in one fell swoop, no discussion, no explanation to the public that does not get a council package to study, no questions; just say "Yea" and be done with it.

The consent agenda was a contribution of past City Manager John Bingham. He used to get quite defensive when I would suggest that it was a slick way of sweeping items under the table that may not bear well the light of public scrutiny.

It was my practice to always withhold, for discussion, those items on the consent agenda that involved spending the public's money because a wise person once told me that "Public business should always be conducted in public."

Later in the meeting the public was formally excluded from a couple of items of business conducted under executive session.

Having been on both sides of the closed door during executive sessions I know that the act of closing the door raises the question of propriety. In my experience the council always acted properly in such matters and I have no doubt that the present council will continue to earn that trust.

Nevertheless it would be helpful if the chairman would explain to the interested public what had been achieved in the closed session rather than a simple "Approve Settlement Agreement and Mutual Release between BSB Construction Inc., and City of McCook, vote yea or nay."

In later questioning by the Gazette reporter, Mayor Berry disclosed that the agreement had cost the taxpayers $10,000.

The issue had something to do with the company not meeting a performance bond and owing the city $10,000 and then suing the city for $20,000 and then settling for $10,000 or maybe it was the other way around, but I am sure that all the council members understood and approved of the deal. Public business should be conducted in public.

Some years ago the City Council, fearing a disaster at midnight Dec. 31, 1999, (remember the "chicken little" Y2K scare?) purchased a large electrical generator and installed it to power the seat of city government in case of loss of commercial power.

It was never used. At budget time each year, Councilman Lyons pushed to sell our unnecessary and surplus generator, but the sale never happened.

Well, well, well a couple of weeks ago, when asked, City Manager Kurt Fritsch loaned it to Holdrege to provide power for their school system.

Good for Kurt and good for the City of McCook for lending a helping hand to a neighbor in need.

 

That is the way I saw it.

-- Dick Trail is a former McCook City Councilman, Red Willow County Commissioner and career Air Force officer.