Dear Boris
Please note my occasional proofreader had to read the following post three times before it made sense to them. I have not decided if this reflects poorly on them or me. You be the judge.
“I read your stuff. It’s pretty good. What do you hope to accomplish?” is a brief excerpt from an email I received earlier in the week. Following is my response.
Dear Boris (name changed to protect the innocent)
Thanks for your comments. I’m glad you read and liked my stuff. I do think I am doing a tad bit better than “pretty good” though. C’mon man this blogging stuff is hard work. It often takes hours to write one post. I would be forever grateful if you would consider changing your description to “provocatively witty” or “sharp and clever.”
In response to your question: “What do I hope to accomplish?” I would say not too much. Really it boils down to one of two things. Either Council-member Schneider resigns from the Council or he quits bidding on construction projects for the City. Think about it for a second. What dirt pusher wouldn’t dig this gig? He gets the skinny on projects coming to town months before his competition. He is one of five people that decide what goes where and how much to spend. And Boris, we’re not just talking roads here. We’re talking detention and drainage projects and rail and road projects. We’re talking lots and lots of dirt being pushed around!
“But the bids are sealed!” you might say. “This is true” would be my response. The rub, Boris, comes before the bids (refer to above paragraph for reference) and after the bids. Let’s say he is the low bidder and he is awarded the project. He must then take off his Councilman’s hat and put on his contractor’s hat. This means he is not really on the Council while he is driving his tractor but he is on the Council the rest of the time. So if he is in City Hall on dirt business he is NOT on the Council but if he is in City Hall on any other business he IS on the Council. Now any self respecting bidness man will always work to lower both their carbon footprint and their gas bill. So what happens when he brings both hats to City Hall? Do you think it might possibly confuse our employees? Say, he has concerns about a project he picked up a bid package for. He wants to talk about the materials specified in the bid. He thinks they are too expensive and he wants them changed to a more cost effective material like concrete. He also expresses concerns about the durability of that “new fangled” stuff. Which hat would he be wearing Boris? I think the situation might could be downright confusing. Which hat was it that influenced the decision to change the specifications from the new fangled stuff to concrete?
Clear as mud? I hope not. Thanks for reading my blog. Please email me again any time.
Tags: City Charter, Conflict of Interest, Construction contracts, Ethics