I’ve got to keep better track of these things, but it seems as though it’s been a month or so since I made a request for information about the repair costs and agreements on the construction of Pablo Kisel Boulevard.

But a call today to the City Secretary’s office found that, no, there was no report. A nice fellow–the one I dealt with when I made the requests, Juan, I believe–told me there was nothing on either request and he would call Mr. Navarro at Public Works to see what the progress is. An odd fact in this is that Mr. Navarro assured me immediately prior to sending me to the City Secretary to make an information request, that he’d nearly gotten the information ready.

Reader Patricia A. wisely pointed out that the likely explanation is that city employees don’t have a lot of experience dealing with “engaged citizens” and don’t know how to act. Perhaps. Perhaps in the past requests such as mine have been made in order to find politically damaging material. While I do see that as possible deterrent for city employees, the discussion I want to engage in is positive, ultimately. What are the costs of the current state of Brownsville’s rather peculiar and apparently under-coordinated and over politicized administration? Should we make special deals with developers and do givebacks on basic things such as road construction standards? It is possible that, without the givebacks, the sunrise strip malls would not have been developed, or might not have been developed so quickly? But with the givebacks apparently made to the developers, the roads there are going to be an albatross around the city’s neck for a long time to come. How many other give backs are we paying similar premiums for? How about the recently completed Morrison Road, two lanes where five lanes were needed, according to the traffic drawn by Target and others. Whose town is it? The developers or the city?

Is it going to be possible to depoliticize the city administration? The charter, put together at the height of the early twentieth century progressive movement, should be used to protect against the very kinds of interferences that seem to be daily experience. The purpose was to have professionals in charge–yes, politicians on the city council to make policy decisions and to hire and fire the city manager, but the professionals should be in charge on a day to day basis and should work as much as possible to apply “the plan,” in this case the master development plan which did exist at the time.

In the long run, I think, I’m trying to help.

Update: (4 pm) Juan from the City Secretary called to say he’d heard from Mr. Navarro who said the data is together. Probably, I will be able to pick it up tomorrow, Juan continued.