You, The People of Brady did your share to bring about more open and responsive government last night. By chair count, about 150 citizens attended. It was a success in that everyone did adhere to the Simple Ground Rules laid out in the meeting plan. Discussion centered exclusively on issues rather than people. People respected each other and listened to whoever was speaking. There was only one sharp exchange that ended when both parties had the good sense to drop it and let others speak.
No one knew exactly what to expect from this first meeting, so specific planning was impossible. It developed into more of a "question and answer" session than anyone anticipated. As a result, the moderator spent more than the promised ten minutes at the microphone. This proved to be a beneficial turn of events.
Only one member of the City Council (Brendan Weatherman) spoke, but contract city attorney Susan Horton spoke many times during the meeting. After repeated, direct questions, she was forced to give details about the current proposed Waste Water project. For the first time, the people know that this is a Waste Water project that has absolutely nothing to do with drinking water. It will cost about $11 million. The people of Brady will have to borrow about half of that. The current proposed $1.2 million issuance of Certificates of Obligation is just the beginning. Another $4.3 million will have to be borrowed later from the Texas Water Development Board.
Waste Water manager Marty Martin gave an excellent overview of the proposed project. He invited everyone to contact him personally for details and a tour. In brief, the project involves building a new Waste Water treatment plant at the existing location on the east side of town and connecting all of the homes at Brady Lake to the system.
Many questions remain unanswered. For example, Attorney Horton said the project had been under consideration since 2008 but that there was no time to put it on the ballot for voter approval. That seems disingenuous at best, as does the claim that the City cannot have a special election before May of next year.
People left wondering why the Waste Water problem was not addressed years ago and why they need to borrow money on an emergency basis. The City spent millions over the years on less necessary projects while letting the basic, vital water and sewer infrastructure deteriorate. If they would simply listen to the people, that would not happen.
Citizens were able to express their displeasure about the lack of City Council transparency and poor spending prioritization. The evening passed before a number of important topics could be discussed. Among them were the petition to force the City to obtain voter approval before borrowing money, utility distribution charges, electricity deregulation and overall spending levels.