Editorial: Nelson, Council Again Ignore the 'Hyper-Vocal Minority'

With citizen concerns still existing, Mayor Ginger Nelson and the Amarillo City Council once again ignored the public and passed a large fee hike at the Warford Activity Center on Tuesday.

There is not much to be said about this vote that has not already been stated. The City Council (with the exception of Eddy Sauer, who was not present for the vote) unanimously rammed through a second reading of fee increases for the Warford Center, with the fee increases reaching over 500 percent in most cases. And, while the vote was unanimous, there was still plenty of citizen concern, as members of the public did speak against the fee increases over the period of the ordinance’s consideration.

I would say the vote is disappointing, but at this point, Amarillo should come to expect this level of disregard from Mayor Nelson and the City Council. Whether the disregard is shown through votes or through public interactions, such as Nelson and city manager Jared Miller being scheduled to present a panel titled “Facing the Hyper-Vocal Minority” at a conference this year, Amarilloans should already be aware of the fact that our municipal government appears to completely and totally lack any consideration for the members of the public who are not cheerleaders for their causes.

While ignoring the public has become the norm, citizens can still make a difference at City Hall. Write to your elected officials, call the mayor’s office, and speak at meetings. The citizens who spoke out on this issue, while ignored, did the right thing. Let’s hope more citizens follow their lead and speak their concerns to power. At some point, we must hope that they will listen.

-Thomas Warren III, Editor-in-Chief