Politcal Theater
BY DANIEL W. DRAKE ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER
In the blink of an eye, another town meeting has come and gone. Actually that is only a rhetorical reference. Sitting through it was painful. Even Hawkeye thought so, and he wasn't even there.

Lately, the red tails seem to have given over the local skies to the ospreys, who are raising two young on the neighborhood osprey pole. However, Hawkeye's unmistakable squawk came through loudly and clearly Saturday afternoon when I was outside doing some carpentry. As he landed on the fence nearby, he didn't waste time on the niceties.

"Word is all over town," he said. "That was some scene at your Special Town Meeting the other night."

"What do you mean?" I said.

"Well, the consensus of most everyone I have talked to is that…"

"Wait just a minute," I interrupted. "What do you mean, the people with whom you have talked? Many folks make snide remarks about my conversations with you. One would almost think they believe I am crazy and they certainly don't let on that they might talk with you. If there are others, that would give me some ammunition…."

"Of course people talk to me," Hawkeye said. "But I can't tell you who they are anymore then I tell them that I talk to you."

"I take care of that," I said, with a slightly sarcastic tone. "I'm not shy about the publicity."

"Just know," Hawkeye's tone was somewhat more mellow than usual, "that some of them are one and the same as those who tell you you're nuts. And they are just as opinionated as you are."

"All right, I am sorry I interrupted," I went on. "Tell me what you heard. Let's see if it jibes with my view of what happened."

"The overall reaction was one of bewilderment." Hawkeye was briefly silent. "People seemed bothered and, yes, bewildered by both Articles 1 and 3. The recurring question on both of them was, 'Where is the plan? How does this fit into a plan?'"

"I certainly think that is a fair concern," I said as I started trimming the bottom of a door. People have certainly been asking about the plan for the Dreamland. What is the proposed non-profit going to look like? Who is involved? Where is the business plan? Would such an entity be financially viable from the operating standpoint? Nothing has been put on the table.

"To make matters worse, the Finance Committee didn't approve Article 1, so the proponents of the town's buying the Dreamland cobbled together a positive motion which is required if town meeting is to take any action. Then, a joint meeting of the Board of Selectmen and the Finance Committee was convened just before the town meeting to give the Finance Committee an opportunity to change its mind and approve the positive motion. The group gathered around a table in front of the stage amid the rising din of the gathering crowd of voters."

"Yes," said Hawkeye, "I heard about that. It was a bad scene. It was difficult to hear. The Finance Committee members did not seem clear on what they were being asked to consider and some of them, rightly so it would seem, expressed their annoyance at the fire drill nature of the process. In the end, I gather the Committee did not take a position on the positive motion and let its previous vote on the original article stand."

"That is right, I think," I replied. "Additionally, the motion, as presented, gave the Board of Selectmen too much wiggle room in implementing the motion, if it passed."

"I also heard," Hawkeye jumped in, "that town counsel was involved, at some level, in drafting the positive motion which seems a bit strange, since it was being presented by a group of citizens, one of whom also happens to be a selectman. How does that happen?"

"Good question," I said. "Someone told me that town counsel wasn't charging for the time he spent on the motion. I hope that is the case; public funds should not be spent on that. But be that as it may, even if he isn't charging for the time he spent on the motion, the potential for conflict of interest seems significant."

"With the defeat of the motion, it's academic," Hawkeye opined. "Enough of that. Let's talk about Article 3 which would authorize the town's purchase of the Island Spirits property for the buses. I think it's a good idea to have all the buses in one place. They will make a great target for seagulls dropping their scallops to open them."

"The buses don't run in scallop season, I said, "which is part of the issue. People were wondering whether it was worth buying the property when the buses are only a June-September issue. But equally important, they wondered how the proposal fit in with any plan for the utilization of the electric company property for the buses and for parking and the bus station's impact on traffic. The downtown traffic study is due next winter. Might it change anything? In part because of the confusion, in the end, the proposal only passed by one vote."

While I contemplated the rather ragged result of my attempt to trim the door, Hawkeye thought for a moment. "I think there are two - no, three - issues here. One of them is how both of these projects fit into the town's priorities. Another is developing a foundation for the proposal - the plan. The third is getting the projects considered and acted upon in a timely and measured fashion without having the world come to a screeching halt for a town meeting to which very few people end up going.

"Besides thinking that you should hire a carpenter," Hawkeye looked at me beadily, "I think that it's about time to turn the management of this town over to a town manager and a council of some sort. With the concerns it raised about preparation and with the ridiculous quorum issue, this special town meeting, short as the agenda was, served to underscore the need to go to a different system sooner rather than later."

"I couldn't agree with you more," I said. That was clearly what Hawkeye wanted to hear because he said a quick goodbye over his shoulder as he headed off into the distance. Soon the only sound was the concerned cry of an osprey as it hovered over one of the chicks just learning to fly.

• • • I

The "Lighthouse Keeper" reflects the views of the author and does not necessarily represent the editorial position of The Nantucket Independent. Please send any ideas or comments to drake@nantucketindependent. com.