To the editor:
On Nov. 26, members of the Crestwood Board of Aldermen proved that the real power in Crestwood lies with the city administrator and not with our elected officials.
For years, the citizens of Crestwood have debated the animal-control position’s value and necessity within the community.
Whole elections have turned on whether a candidate supported or opposed the position.
Yet who knew it wasn’t really up to the people? Apparently it was just a simple staffing issue entirely under the control of the city administrator. Therefore, on Nov. 26, members of the Board of Aldermen abdicated their authority over which services the residents of Crestwood receive by allowing the city administrator to fire the animal-control employee and not replace her, effectively ending the service to the city.
While I don’t expect board members to hire and fire individual staff members, I do expect them to decide which services we receive as residents.
The excuse, “Hey, it wasn’t up to me. That’s accounting’s fault,” is a time-honored method used to defer blame for unpopular decisions.
I just didn’t expect it to render my elected aldermen completely irrelevant. I wonder which service will be next while my aldermen sit by wishing they had a role to play in the decision.