The Legislature is considering a pack of bills aimed at forcing the city of Phoenix to change the way it does business.
Let’s see: a $100 million shopping center subsidy, a 277 percent boost in the public’s cost to cover city pensions over the last decade, a doubling of water rates in 10 years and a City Council that sat back and allowed the top guy to spike his pension to the point where he now draws far more in retirement than former U.S. presidents.
Yeah, I’d say some change might be in order.
But I don’t think it should come from the Legislature. (Here’s where you put the down this column and go look in the mirror. You are now looking at where change comes from.)
Did I mention that Phoenix has an election this year and that Mayor Phil Gordon is term limited?
Conventional wisdom says his replacement will come from within the ranks of the City Council. The last time an outsider was elected mayor was 1983, when Terry Goddard rode into office on a wave of fresh air that also ushered in the council district system.
Since Goddard, every mayor has come from within council ranks and this year is shaping up to be more of the same. The early favorite is the Christopher Columbus of the City Council, Peggy Neely. She’s been exploring a run for mayor since may, collecting copious amounts of cash from developers and lawyers who do business with the city. She won’t admit she’s running because then she’d have to resign her seat and all the attendant perks. yet she spent more on her “exploratory” campaign last year than all the other candidates – combined.
Councilman Claude Mattox, who is in the last year of his term and so doesn’t need to resign, is also running, as is former nine-year Councilman Greg Stanton, who left in 2009.
Then there’s Wes Gullett, a guy who could be a formidable candidate if anybody paid attention. Sadly, statistics show that few voters do.
Gullett is no newcomer to politics. He’s a political consultant who was chief of staff to Gov. Fife Symington and deputy campaign manager for John McCain’s 2000 presidential run. his wife, Deb, was a chief of staff for both Gordon and McCain and served in the Legislature.
I asked him why he’s running when the odds are stacked against him. “in my house,” he said, “you don’t get to complain unless you stand up and deliver.”
Gullett has already had an impact on city hall. on Jan. 16, he wrote an op-ed piece, questioning why the city was about to raise water rates by 7 percent, given that they’ve already doubled in 10 years. three days later, the council postponed the vote, claiming to need more information.
Since then, the city has put out all manner of explanations, leading you to conclude you’ll be drinking sludge if you don’t hand over the cash.
“my favorite is (that) the cost of chemicals has gone up 493 percent — over 10 years, by the way,” Gullett said. “how come it hasn’t gone up at home? You’d notice if your pool chemicals went up 493 percent. And how about this? Maybe we should get a new vendor if the price has gone up that much. I mean, it’s ridiculous.”
Speaking of ridiculous, I am reminded of the $100 million CityNorth subsidy. Neely and Mattox were for it. Stanton opposed it. Gullet says he would have been a no, as well.
In fact, he says a lot of things that won’t endear him to the city hall set. one word in particular is likely to make the other mayoral candidates squirm: pensions.
It was on their watch that Jack Harris was allowed to double dip, retiring as police chief only to return as public-safety manager.
It was on their watch that former City Manager Frank Fairbanks was allowed to spike his pension, scooping up $1.3 million during his last three years in order to score the largest public pension in Arizona — $246,813 a year.
And it was on their watch that the taxpayers’ cost to fund city pensions rose 277 percent in 10 years. This year, the tab will hit $93.7 million. yet it wasn’t until reporter Craig Harris started poking around last fall that the city suddenly decided to act – by appointing a study committee. even then Gordon took up for the poor overworked, underpaid city employees, as if it was somehow an attack to question whether they should be able to cash in stunning amounts of unused leave to hit the jackpot at public expense.
Gullett says the pension spiking needs to stop.
The question is, why didn’t the folks in power stop it? Probably because of city hall syndrome, a common malady wherein our elected leaders forget who it is they are working for.
“It’s a strong manager and a strong staff and it’s built that way for a reason,” Gullett said. “But what the council’s job to do is to ask tough questions and push back and occasionally say no, so that everybody works together. Those systems just don’t work if the answer’s always yes.”
They also don’t work if nobody’s paying attention. Voter turnout in the last mayoral election was 18.69 percent.
(Column published Feb. 12, 2011, The Arizona Republic)
<a href="http://www.azcentral.com/members/Blog/LaurieRoberts/118419tag:news.google.com,2005:cluster=http://www.azcentral.com/members/Blog/LaurieRoberts/118419Sat, 12 Feb 2011 03:35:05 GMT 00:00″>Don’t like what’s going on? Then pay attention
Related Blogs
Font Size:
