Horribly underprepared

Devon Barclay · Horribly underprepared

OK, folks - I'm skimming this, and my better instinct says to leave it because I just don't have the info I'd like to start writing messages. However, in the last two months I've had the honest privilege of working with about a dozen people who care deeply about this City, and are willing to put their money and their mouths where their hearts are.

Edgewater has always survived, and always will. This town will never become a statutory city. But you can do some pretty messed up things to survive. We dodged that bullet this week.

What this City has lacked for too long has been some real vision. All of a sudden, we've got that opportunity.

FOLKS: Everything was turned on its head June 24. This City gets to start over. The blueprint is BLANK. The players, even, are BLANK. And, if I say it myself, this new Charter gives us a lot of ground to make history.

The old voting blocs don't count now. The Old Guard lost one. The people who abused those voters, through fear and lies, lost an election. This new Charter was decided by roughly 100 people who moved here looking for promise, registered, heard the arguments, and stood by their own common sense.

A DOOR HAS OPENED IN THIS CITY.

Edgewater was, once, a town that could have annexed both Lakewood and WheatRidge - but the leaders at the time couldn't see any value in taking on that risk. We've now, decades later, rounded that corner. Our City is primed to grow, and perhaps even become one of the most sought-after places to live in the metro area. This new Ice Rink cements the possibility.

A question remains: where will our kids go to School?

We've got work to do here, people: and hard fights. But we can win. Let's get, or stay, involved. Let's work with our school system, and find against the overlords at Jeffco who misguidedly think the East end of this county offers no promise. Let's plant lots and lots of trees, and make the people walking down our town in strollers the norm. Let's bring this town some new life. Let's give those people good schools, good parks, and a good community to share. And maybe, just maybe, this place will find a second Renaissance - this can't be remembered as a prohibition town forever.

We have earned more than that.

I can't disown my own bias - only accept the reason I chose it. This City will bloom if we give good schools, good parks, good programs, and good neighbors to the people who might move here. I think we all deserve this.

Looking ahead · Keep up the momentum

I too am excited about the possibilities the latest events have put in front of us.
Council has a heavy burden to carry out over the next year. It is a historical and monumental task they are being charged with. They will need all of our support and encouragement.
The new charter is going to be a work in process. There are still some things that have to be worked out. They may or may not be the exact thing that some had in mind, or they may be just what some thought they would be. Two things come to mind.
The city manager. Council has a huge task before them in deciding the job description of the manager. The charter offers a lot of it, but leaves some to discussion. This is where the citizens need to get involved and be a part of the discussions.
The other big task is forming a charter review committee. The right people need to be chosen and the right balance of responsibility needs to be decided. This committee needs to be made up of people who are willing to put a lot of time and effort into learning the charter, learning the legal ramifications, and are willing to be completely impartial in judgement - a very difficult task in a small town. This committee does not need someone on board whos only agenda is to 'stick it to the government'. We don't need a vigilante force of five people tasked with deciding on ethical issues. They don't go hand in hand.
These are two of the biggest issues facing council.

Then we have the almost unfathomable ice arena coming to our city. There are so many possibilities here. This is really exciting!!!

The new retail strip on Sheridan offers a new look to that area. Looks like at least one shop - Eco Paint - is open there already. There are some nice restaraunts coming in soon as well.

All in all, our little spot on the map is really starting to look pretty good. I hope the momentum continues.

Happy

New Charter, New Ice Arena, Target, Many new stores where the Bingo Parlor was. Packed concerts in the Park. Those are some good things.

Guest

At the risk of getting slammed to floor here, I say this with all earnest intent, not as an attempt to stir things up.

For me the hardest part of the new charter to swallow was the charter compliance commission. I believe that it was born and bread of people who have spent years tying to ‘stick it to the government’. There is nothing to make me believe that these same people aren’t going to be the ones applying for the commission seats.

I foresee, as did all of the legal counsel received by the charter commission, many unexpected consequence of this part of the charter. I encourage council to study their opinions at length as they decide how much or how little power to give this commission.

Some Japanese guy once said something about awakening a sleeping giant. Some giants are good and others aren’t.

The Harlander

I don't believe the Charter Review and compliance Commission as advesarial at all. It's first duty is to conduct an on going review of the Charter and to make recommendations for referendum if occassion should arise. Another part of their duties could be education. Do you know how many elected and appointed officials we have had that believed the Charter was nothing more than a list of recommendations if they bothered to read it at all.
The compliance portion of their duties should be taken seriously by the Commissioners. They will probably get lots of complaints that have nothing to do with Charter violations and they will have to dispense those out of hand. Then there is the point of Charter non-compliance or willful violation. It would be my desire that with the new awarness of our Charter and it's inherent authority that there will never be a case of willful violation but if the situation should arise, the Commission needs the athority to deal with it. As far as Charter non-compliance goes, the boards responsibility would fall in the realm of education and advisory in nature. That is not a bad thing, nor is the Commission if it is formed and populated correctly.

Guest

"I believe that it was born and bread of people who have spent years tying to ‘stick it to the government’. There is nothing to make me believe that these same people aren’t going to be the ones applying for the commission seats.

I foresee, as did all of the legal counsel received by the charter commission, many unexpected consequence of this part of the charter. I encourage council to study their opinions at length as they decide how much or how little power to give this commission. "

This is a concern I have as well. Although, first off, I will say that I do believe there needs to be more accountability in our government. Too often the city has had to suffer because an official has overstepped their boundaries - fully well knowing that there would be no retribution.
So, how do we strike a happy medium? How does council decide who to appoint? And what if the only applicants are those who were also on the charter commission?
The charter has passed, but there is still the opportunity to make it the best it can be. What suggestions do you have to avoid the above mentioned concerns?

Guest

My suggestion is a day late and a dollar short, but here are my thoughts anyway.
I feel that the responsibility for reviewing the charter against changing state and federal legislation is NO job for citizen volunteers. It belongs in the attorney’s hands. Accusations of wrong doing should also be referred to our legal department, and not volunteers.

I agree, there must be accountability in all that we do. These types of decisions are of a very serious nature with potential consequences that go beyond the scope of what volunteers should be held responsible for. I would have liked to have seen this whole commission idea taken out of the charter and left as an administrative duty of the city. But since that didn’t happen, I would hope that council puts this commission under the extreme supervision of our attorneys.

Guest

Makes sense. I do think that an attorney should review all decisions made by the charter review committee. I also think that there can be a lot of good that a volunteer committee can accomplish. These are the decisions that need to be made after a lot of discussion about the pros and cons of each situation.

Guest

It must not be forgotten that it was citizen volunteers (even though they were elected) that wrote the Charter. Who better than people whom have sat in the office of Charter Conventioneer whether it was in 1992 or 2008 to sit on this Commission. In their quasi-judicial capacity they most definetly will need benifit of judicial council just as the Council, Board of Adjustments and the Planning and Zoning Board does. Any complaints with the Commission should be on an official City from provided by the City Clerk and should cite the person or persons the complaint is against, the Charter Articles that were violated and the details of the supposed violations and signed by the complaintant. A copy of said form should be provided to the person or persons the complaint is lodged against, the Commission and the City Attorney and or special council to the Commission. A review should be held to see if there is any validity to the complaint before a hearing can be conducted.
As far reviewing the Charter, Council appointed a Charter Review Committee last summer and I think they did a thourogh job without benifit of legal council as did the Charter Commission whom did have legal council.

Guest · Still don't like it

...official form...from so and so...citing this and that...provided to...and so on and so on.... Is this in the charter, or are you presumptively making up what you expect council to do? Or is it the commission that is supposed to define this? Has someone already done this?

Seeking ‘benefit of judicial council (shouldn’t that have been counsel?)’ is much different from working under the legal department. If legal decides there is some validity and wants the commission to do the leg work, I’m ok with that. Saves us some money.

Guest

I agree that there could be two, maybe even three from the charter commission on this charter review committee. However, to have a full group of the same people who essentially wrote the charter to be the ones to essentially enforce it presents a conflict.

Guest

I don't think you'll get two let alone three charter commissioners to apply but that being said, where's the conflict? That's like saying if you own your home you can't serve on the Planning and Zoning Board.

Legal Eagle

I think you should have a law degree in order to vote, run for office or own property. That way the entire government can be the legal department and all of our problems will go away.

Guest

And there ya go!

Guest

Legal Eagle, your BRILLIANT! I like it.

Guest

Guest

Again, makes sense. Keep em' coming. Maybe someone from council is reading this and will reflect on the thoughts here.

Guest · the debate is over

This, to my mind, is a weird conversation. The time to debate the Charter Commission is over. You there, whoever you are, trying your darndest to dilute, diffuse, discredit, disembowel, demean (should I go on?) in other words to disenfranchise (I found another one!) the Charter Commission and in every way possible to trivialize it into extinction, your time to do that was last winter.
We have a Charter Commission. Give it a chance instead of trying to subvert it. You had your chance to do that, you didn't take it.

There was a time, a long time ago now, when I was new in town and didn't know anyone and I found myself in a situation where I really needed a commission, such as this, to turn to.

There was no one there to protect the average citizen from Charter violations by elected officials.

I'll grant you this is going to be an interesting experiment but it is an attempt at accountability and it does give average citizens somewhere to go if they need help.
The concept of "a jury of our peers" is good enough to convict someone of far greater crimes. I think we can be safe with a citizen commission. Citizen Commissions make judgements that affect our wealth and our quality of life why not accountabililty for our elected officials?
It is in Council's hands now. I have confidence they will choose wisely.
Let's hope it becomes a benevolent, wise and caring commission and in the end we are glad we stepped out on the limb and formed a Charter Commission.
Remember, if we're not, this Charter isn't written on stone tablets. It can be amended.
Breath...don't panic, give it a chance. Find something else to worry about.

I Voted · Couldn't part the charter

I supported the new charter and I voted for it. I supported it mostly for the new form of government. The 'ethics' committee (charter review) never quite sat right with me. Although I do believe that this town is in serious need of a better accountability of government, I'm not sure that I want a small group of 5 judging ethics or willful violations of charter. At least not on their own. And I certainly don't want someone with a grudge to be on that committee. I would definitely want an attorney advising.

The charter had a few BIG changes. You could not vote for only part of it. I had to decide what was more important to me. New government or preventing a possible new vigilante force of citizens forming legally.

This is not an easy thing to resolve. I just hope that council has all the help and input that they need to make a decision on how to make this happen.

John Moreno · CRCC what is the reality?

Since I was the one who dreamed up this Commission, then I should weigh in on this debate. First Lets actually read what the functions of this Commission are:

Old timey American · question

What is "vigilante" about requiring elected officials to comply with the Charter and putting some teeth in it? It wouldn't have been odd or vigilante a few decades ago.
It's that George Bush, isn't it? That's right, I forget, no one has to be accountable anymore. It's passe', right?

Frankenstien's Monster

As long as you have a lawyer to cover your butt that's being financed at taxpayers expense. I can see this evil commission now. They will be dressed in peasant clothing (can I use that word?) and carrying torches and pitch forks and chanting "Witch, witch, witch!" while the poor elected and appointed officials huddle in fear in their benificant laboratories of public policy. It'll make a great horror flick for sure.

Creative Director · Les Miserable

I think if they get together regularly they could choreograph their proceedings and sing. The peasant clothing is a really creative idea, I like that. Do you think we could require this Commission to speak only in French?

Solomon · Problem Solved

Council and The Charter

You can bet that council, with help from members of the charter commission, is delving into all of the Charter changes. My bet is they will tackle it with finesse and aplomb. They have good counsel on their side and all are competent. Have faith. All will transpire in good time.

Guest

Nah, French is to Frenchy. I'm thinking they should conduct their proceedings in a language rooted in Democratic ideals. Either Greek or Latin. Of course if they turn out to be an inquisition as some think they may then Proper Spanish would be the tongue of choice and the meetings must be held in Star Chambers.

Vlad Dracula

Has Council appropriated enough funds to purchase a well built Iron Maiden or wooden stocks? Shouldn't a well appointed Commission also have lashes and hot pokers so they can get to the truth? I've been reading up on the History of Vlad the Impaller, I think I'm ready to put in my application.

Guest · It is....all about the schools

I agree, Good things are happening. Look around at all of the young family's with kids walking around Edgewater now. They won't stay here if the schools don't improve. But how to fix ? I don't know.

School Daze

Go to R1 School Board meetings. Demand changes for our schools. Assemble some figures on how many kids are open enrolled out of our articulation area. Organize a parents action committee and don't be afraid to call those School Board members, they are no different than you or an Edgewater Councilperson or Mayor. They put their pants on one leg at a time.

Admin1 · Please?

Oh my, look at this. I turn my back for a day or two and now I see a lively discussion of Charter issues posted in Urban Planning. I see another interesting series of posts about the fireworks and our police dept. in Creative Writing.
Did I mention how much I dislike having to "re-file" off- topic posts? Well, I do. It's rather a hassle.
Please, my kind Talkingstick friends, might we at least try to post to a somewhat related topic?
My deepest, and sincere thanks. Admin 1

Guest

That's why all us children need mothers.

Devon Barclay · wandering concersations...

I agree, Admin1, but conversations have their own way of wandering.

Having just not read these posts, I'd like to point out that even if the CRCC (Charter Review and Compliance Commission) is stocked totally with anti-government, hippie-weed smoking anarchists, they'll still have to recommend their accusations to the City Prosecutor for action. I don't know a whole lot of lawyers who like risk, or who like to damage their careers with frivolous cases.

The CRCC provision in our Charter makes State (and maybe National) history. We should be proud it's there. Anybody wanna be a part of it?

Guest

Anti-government, hippie-weed smoking anarchists??????
Devon, you are so very young, aren't you?

A.G.H.W.S.A.

Yo! I resemble that remark!
anti-government, hippie-weed smoking anarchists
well maybe part of at least
Devin
Devin
Devin

OK I'm going to type slow so you can understand.

Not all people who are anti-government are hippie-weed smoking anarchists.

Not all hippie's are weed smokers , anarchists or anti-government.

therefore not all anarchists are anti-government, Hippie's or weed smokers.

And finally not all people who are weed smokers are anti-government ,hippies who are anarchists.

Thank You for your time

P.F.W.R.R.P.O.W.D.C.

Yeah but then again there are some people who are anti-government, hippie-weed smoking anarchists just like there are some people who are patriotic, flag waving, religous right, pro-oil, whiskey drinking conservatives. I even meet a whiskey drinking, weed smoking, tofu eating, flag waving, hippie Republican once. It takes all kinds to make a world. That's why I don't want the village raising my child, some of the villagers scare me.

Guest

HAHAHAHA!!!
That's funny!

Sad, but funny.

Horribly underprepared

Keep up the momentum

Still don't like it

the debate is over

Couldn't part the charter

CRCC what is the reality?

question

Les Miserable

Problem Solved

It is....all about the schools

Please?

wandering concersations...