Kraft explains to manager, council about 100 block; public should hear same
On September 30, the Oshkosh Northwestern ran this article about the finances involved in the 100 block LLC development and emails from city attorney Warren Kraft as they related to that project. That was followed up with an editorial by executive editor Stew Rieckman concerning secrecy as a whole in the city – an editorial with which I happened to agree.
When we taped an episode of Eye on Oshkosh on Thursday, Oct. 4 with two council members who happened to be on the council (no current council member was on the council back then) at the time this deal with Ben Ganther and his partners was brokered, we spoke about the Northwestern article and the editorial column. While I agree there is much secrecy that does seem to be promoted by city hall, I also said at the time it was possible – without having seen Kraft’s entire email exchange with city staffers from back then – that his comments may have been taken out of context.
One day later, in a memo to the city manager, which subsequently went to members of the Oshkosh Common Council, Kraft offered a full explanation of his position and why he offered the advice several years ago that he did. Councilor Tony Palmeri had earlier said he intended to request a special open meeting where city staff members could discuss with the council the documents regarding the 100 block financing. Last night, however, he withdrew his request, apparently saying that since Kraft’s memo he no longer believes there is a need for the special meeting. A special meeting may not be necessary, but Palmeri missed a golden opportunity to have the city attorney explain for the viewing audience and all taxpayers, in a public venue, why his advice on 100 block financing was what it was back then.
Everyone does not have access to the Internet, and even if they do, not everyone reads blogs. But they do watch the Common Council meetings on cable access. It seems to me that Palmeri, or any councilor for that matter, should ask Kraft to summarize his memo for the public so that everyone knows his reasoning. It does not have to be a confrontational situation, nor does it have to smell of the "gotcha politics" we so frequently see at meetings. But since the public's money was involved in this project, the public is entitled to the same explanation as the city manager and common council members. It might also be a good idea for the Oshkosh Northwestern to publish Kraft’s entire memo in its print version so those without Internet access can read it for themselves.
When we taped an episode of Eye on Oshkosh on Thursday, Oct. 4 with two council members who happened to be on the council (no current council member was on the council back then) at the time this deal with Ben Ganther and his partners was brokered, we spoke about the Northwestern article and the editorial column. While I agree there is much secrecy that does seem to be promoted by city hall, I also said at the time it was possible – without having seen Kraft’s entire email exchange with city staffers from back then – that his comments may have been taken out of context.
One day later, in a memo to the city manager, which subsequently went to members of the Oshkosh Common Council, Kraft offered a full explanation of his position and why he offered the advice several years ago that he did. Councilor Tony Palmeri had earlier said he intended to request a special open meeting where city staff members could discuss with the council the documents regarding the 100 block financing. Last night, however, he withdrew his request, apparently saying that since Kraft’s memo he no longer believes there is a need for the special meeting. A special meeting may not be necessary, but Palmeri missed a golden opportunity to have the city attorney explain for the viewing audience and all taxpayers, in a public venue, why his advice on 100 block financing was what it was back then.
Everyone does not have access to the Internet, and even if they do, not everyone reads blogs. But they do watch the Common Council meetings on cable access. It seems to me that Palmeri, or any councilor for that matter, should ask Kraft to summarize his memo for the public so that everyone knows his reasoning. It does not have to be a confrontational situation, nor does it have to smell of the "gotcha politics" we so frequently see at meetings. But since the public's money was involved in this project, the public is entitled to the same explanation as the city manager and common council members. It might also be a good idea for the Oshkosh Northwestern to publish Kraft’s entire memo in its print version so those without Internet access can read it for themselves.
posted by Cheryl Hentz at 10:41 AM
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