What does the Town Council do? (January 30, 2018)

If Pat Orr’s position as the conductor of the Apple Valley Town Council’s amen choir wasn’t secure before, it certainly should be now in light of his attempt to absolve the Town Council of any and all responsibility for the governance of the Town (What does the Town Council Do?, Daily Press, January 30, 2018).

If Orr is to be believed, the Town Council’s one and only responsibility is to hire a Town Manager. From that point on, they are more or less useless.

Strange that Orr missed the fact that we the electorate don’t vote for the Town Manager. We vote for the members of the Town Council and expect them to represent us in matters affecting the town. When citizens don’t like the way things are being done, we direct our comments and concerns to our elected officials, not unelected bureaucrats over whom we have no control.

Has Orr forgotten the organization chart the Town used to publish in each year’s budget, showing that Town commissions, the Town Manager, and the Town attorney report to the Town Council, with the Town Council reporting to the citizens?

Has Orr forgotten how council members tried to deflect criticism of the defective work product of former Assistant Town Manager Marc Puckett by saying that Puckett was just doing what they told him to do? Or Barb Stanton’s claim that transparency is job one?

If Orr’s vision is correct, council members would be powerless to object if the Town Manager decided to allow council members to pad their expense reports with charges for personal meals out with friends, or gave everyone at Town Hall a raise.

Balderdash.

If the Town Council is failing to represent the citizens of Apple Valley, as Orr implies, it’s time for them to go.

Greg Raven is Co-Chair of Apple Valley Citizens for Government Accountability, and is concerned about quality of life issues.