I got out the calculator to compare the average for "misc professional services," 2006-2008 [the old council], with the average for 2009 plus the 2010 budget, same line item, and the new GOP council. The new guys look to spend and be spending, on average, 51.9 times as much in such a non-transparent manner as did the old council.
It is troublesome. This image of minutes for the HRA budget approval:
It is a single line item in the entire half-hidden HRA budget, (the one they are not back-patting over holding the line on from year to year - hardly - ), and the timing in that minutes page, the sequence:
Commissioner Wise arrived, 8:54 p.m.
[the budget item was called to the table - discussion ensued]
Commissioneer Elvig left the meeting at 8:56 p.m. [2-min elapsed from Wise arrival]
[further discussion, adoption motion, second, unanimous passage - case 2 called to the table]
Commissioner Elvig returned to the meeting at 9:00 p.m.
[bracketed text added] Banging out a budget approval, in about the time it took an adult male to leave for a whiz and return.
YOUR council in action.
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I got the calculator out. Averaged the three previous years; the newbies' years; and you can do the same, this page:
Sweet? Sour aftertaste? From that minutes page, the sentinel, sentinelling.
Commissioner Look recalled the HRA did levy the full amount with the understanding there would be additional expenses [Landform, Vegas junketing, rebranding, and propagandizing of rebranding] for the Town Center and the City had cut taxes in other areas.
[bracketed text added] It is good the minutes recollect this. I believe some human recollection has not been as sharp. Sentinelling must be hard work.
_________UPDATE___________
In thinking things over, I cannot really single out Matt Look as responsible for something handled by staff in a vague and under-detailed way, and voted for unanimously where Look only had one vote. I probably overstated things. He has characterized himself as a fiscal sentinel, and is the only council member actively involved as a candidate for office this election cycle, and he sits on the council's finance committee with the budget for HRA clearly a finance committee concern; but it was a collective HRA budged approval decision, led by senior Ramsey staff in presenting the budget in the form I criticize, while those on council present and voting when the budget was approved chose to not have any real debate or discussion and summarily approved things as staff submitted.
An easy political thing might have been to duck the vote. Matt showed up and was counted.
In email Matt Look indicated he has never missed a meeting since elected to council, and he takes pride in that. I have no cause to attack or belittle that. It shows respect for the office and those who voted for him. To the extent he had council business conflicting with other events, and chose to attend council sessions, it's his decision to make. He has indicated he chose to attend a Tuesday council meeting and not attend the labor sponsored candidate forum held in the Anoka City Hall building at an overlapping time. It was his choice to make, not mine.
Read all of that as you like, but do weigh the additional facts in thinking things over.
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That said, I may post less about election races between now and November unless some event or factor prompts me to speak. The only race on the ballot where I have a very strong preference is for Governor, favoring, of course, Dayton. Whatever I say or think about that will have no real influence on the outcome. Had Terry Hendriksen been one of the two finalists for the Anoka County Board District 1 seat, there would have been two races I really cared about, but his being third, where only two move on, made that part of the ballot less interesting to me without Terry as one of the remaining choices.