By Trent Rosser

Most of the current City Council, including Mayor Ginger Nelson, has decided to run for another term. The only exception to this is Elaine Hays. As of this writing, the citizens of Amarillo have already seen a few candidates throw their hat into the ring to challenge the incumbents. Let's go back and take a look to see what the current council has done the last four years that they have held office.

I heard Councilmember Howard Smith on the radio the other morning and they had asked about him and the other council members listening to the citizens. His reply actually proved my point about not listening to the citizens. He claimed that he listens all the time and started to bring up examples. Every example was him listening to developers about building permits. On the same station and radio program a month or so ago, they had Mayor Ginger Nelson on. The day before they had asked their listeners for questions that they should pose to Mrs. Nelson. One of my questions was actually one of the ones that they asked. My question was whether she would be having any town hall meetings so she could listen to the concerns of the citizens, since they are not allowed to voice anything that is not on the agenda at the public comment during the City Council meetings. Her reply stayed on topic that the open meeting act would not allow them to comment on anything during the meetings. That is why they do that and it is not them, but it is the law. She skipped around the question about town hall meetings and side stepped the questions about citizens voicing their concerns. So in reality, has the City Council listened to its citizens? The answer is a hard no. Unless of course you are a part of the PAC that they belong to. When the city voted not to extend the City Council terms and NOT to renovate the Civic Center, she went on the offensive to discredit anyone and any group that voted against it. Did she really say that the voters were misinformed? Wait, didn't she also say that she was against higher taxes? So which is it, was she against the higher taxes or for the civic center? You can't have one without the other!

Let's go back to when the City Council first took office. One of the first things they did was criminalizing the homeless. An ordinance was passed stating no camping on private property. I can understand public property, but telling someone what they can and can not do on their own property? Soon after they went after the people that were trying to help the homeless. This ordinance claimed that someone that has a tent set up for more than 48 hours can be fined up to $2000. And they did fine citizens. I, myself, called the City Attorney and was informed that I too could be fined if I, as an example, “put up a tent for my grandson to play and sleep in during the summer. If it is set up for more than 48 hours, I would be fined.” Throughout the years, they have set up programs to help the homeless, but in reality they have continued to degrade them by taking everything away from the homeless. Less than a couple of weeks ago, they bulldozed an encampment. They will not acknowledge that there are not enough resources for the homeless.

The trash carts are another example of the council not listening to the citizens. Week after week, citizens showed up to speak against the new program to remove the trash dumpsters and be replaced with trash carts. In a town that was once ranked as the windiest city in the United States, we are to use trash carts. This put a burden on the senior citizens as they now have to haul a bulky cart to the curb full of trash twice a week instead of dropping a small bag in the dumpster every day. Also all bulk items will no longer be allowed to be placed next to a dumpster but instead to be put in front of your house. You are then supposed to call the city for a pick up. Unfortunately, this did not work out very well. People ended up waiting for weeks and even months for a pick up that never happened. “Keep Amarillo Beautiful'' was the slogan, but how is putting trash in your front yard supposed to keep it beautiful?

This brings me to the brush sites. They praised themselves for being able to open up two sites for limited times and limited days. This was an achievement that was celebrated throughout city hall. Problem is, they are the ones that closed them all down in the first place.

For years they claimed that they were for lower taxes, but every time they had a chance, they were raised. The last bond election they pushed for the Civic Center bond and again would not listen to other people showing a better plan with a smaller price tag. Instead, when it was voted down by the citizens, they blamed the citizens for being misinformed and lied to. Wait, haven't they been doing that to us for the last four years? They actually became tired of listening to us and changed the meeting times to discourage people from showing up and speaking at meetings. The also change on what you can discuss during a meeting. If it is not on the agenda, then you are not allowed to speak. So if you want to talk about something that is not on the agenda. For example, if you want to discussing the funding of the police department, then you are out of luck. I personally have tried to call many time and no return calls from anyone. We were told that there would be town meetings so we could bring up our concerns. But I haven't heard of any as of yet.

Let's talk about the funding of the police department. The council has cut the funding for the Amarillo Police and the citizens are suffering from it. I have watched as we are being told that we are over 20 officers short and now everything that is reported must be reported online.

Less than a year ago, my vehicle was broken into. I did not touch anything and they could have easily dusted for prints and possibly find out who did this. It was not an isolated incident either. For about five city blocks, cars and trucks were broken into and all kinds of items were stolen. No officer came out. Instead, we were informed to file a report online and someone will get back to us. That is unacceptable! How long before someone reads the report? The thieves could have still been in the process of breaking into vehicles but instead of coming out and checking things out. The citizens must wait for days before someone actually reads what happened. By then everything is over with and the thieves have made their great escape. Now don’t get me wrong, I do not blame the police. I blame the budget cuts and the attorneys that handle the case. I was told, to be exact, “We can’t do much because the D.A. refuses to prosecute anyone. It is too hard of a case to stick.” Here is another example: a few days ago, a man pulled up to the convenience store that he manages. As he got out of his car, he was beaten and his car was stolen. This happened in a lit parking lot, during store hours. We have already had at least two or three murders so far this year and it is not even February yet. We need more funding for the police to do their job! Again, just another accomplishment from the current City Council.

This May we have a chance to bring back control of our city leaders and our government.

Get out and vote to remove the City Council. There have already been some great candidates that have filed to run for office. Hobert “Gunny” Brown, Jason Foglesong, and Tom Scherlen are just a few examples of those who are running. Do your homework, and look at the accomplishments of the current City Council. After all, they have done a lot for Amarillo. They have divided Amarillo, they have lied to Amarillo, and they have trashed Amarillo.

It’s time to stand up and retake this city, and to make this city a clean, and safe place to live.

Actually, they have done something for Amarillo, they are creating quite a stir in people and those people are coming together to take down the current City Council. That is what I am grateful for!