Letters the Editor, Feb. 10
Activism in Gig Harbor is never toxic
I have attended many City Council meetings. I have learned quite a bit, and believe that the activism of the citizens in this community is never toxic. I have found Ms. Lovrovich to be a wonderful citizen advocate in her dealings on the Council.
But I must disagree with her need to let the Council play “victim.” Small town politics is never a trip to the amusement park.
People turn out in large numbers and frankly do their best to protect the heritage and lifestyle of this community they chose to build their lives in. There is genuine anger and revulsion at the shaky management of growth in this community by a Council that literally has no real expertise in this area. People are angry because the giant traffic mess on Pt. Fosdick could have been avoided by more professional planning than it has received.
People are angry because they literally beg this Council to put the brakes on or to hire those with more expertise and are usually ignored or diminished by those who maintain we are afraid of change. I am not afraid of change. I am afraid of amateur planning by those who fail to recognize that their primary job is public safety for this community.
Arguing about the necessity of unannounced fire inspections is one example of sheer stupid. There is no polite way to say that and I cannot apologize for it. Growth requires code changes that protect the community. To protect is your job. Failure to protect your citizens is never negotiable on any level.
This Council seems to forget that respect and trust are earned. The anger comes from being repeatedly shut out of decisions that we have to live with on a daily basis. Competence matters. Trusting the voters who pay the taxes this City needs to pay their bills matters. Admit that some choices you have made are indeed, toxic, for us, and hire people with stronger planning resumes to manage the legacy and the growth with some regard to citizen input. We all love this community. Respect us and we will return it to you. We've been anxious to have a pleasant talk with all of you.
Margot LeRoy, Gig Harbor
This story was originally published February 12, 2016 at 12:00 PM with the headline "Letters the Editor, Feb. 10."