The Winter 2007 "Bay Leaves" arrived in the mail today.  Looks like it's a bit late, as there are a number of announcements meant for December.

But the bigger story was the front page "Greetings from the Village President" by Katie Pritchard.   Usually, Pritchard writes a quality, professional missive full of news items without histrionics.  Not this quarter.

"Kudos to the many of you who took the time to determine the facts before responding to the rumors about CVS.  The fact is that while CVS did look at a site on .. Silver Spring .. the Village has not received an application .. that would be required .. to proceed."

Umm. How are you supposed to interpret that?   Pritchard identifies two types of people who are interested in the issue.  Those that have the facts, kudos to them, and those who do not, who, to put it kindly, get no kudos.

And then there was:

"Unfortunately, some people were similarly misled when they were told that Village ordinances discourage restaurants on Silver Spring... I commend those of you who took the time to consult the website or contact our Village Manager to verify the facts in these situations and encourage all of you to consider the importance of sound information in good government decision making."

Interpretation: Commendations to those who took the time to find out the facts.  To those of you who don't know them, no commendations for your ignorance. 

Hey, you know what would have been a better response here, instead of criticizing those who weren't as informed?  How about informing them?    While WFB did have some bits of information on this subject on the village website, they have since been removed. 

At worst, however, what Pritchard should have taken away from this is that there is a lack of accurate information floating around the Village, and instead of complaining about the complainers, get on your horse, get a newsletter out, call a press conference, post a lengthy explanation on the website of what's happening, what the rules are, in short: COMMUNICATE!

Honestly, I'm flabbergasted with this very public poke in the eye to a segment of Village residents.  Pritchard's jibes sounded like that first draft you write from your gut, including impolite things you want to say, but edit out in future drafts because you realize how unprofessional it sounds.

And for the record, I'm not insulted.  Besides voicing my opposition to the possibility of CVS moving in, I went to the Village Board meeting where the Manager discussed the CVS situation, and WROTE about it here, sharing the information.  -- I know people who've claimed WFB officially discourages restaurants and liquor licenses, but I have reserved judgment due to lack of facts, as I've personally never read that it has occurred.

I can imagine Pritchard's frustration, but there's an antidote to ignorance.  Truth be told, the information flow in the Village is very weak.  With shallow news coverage and, let's face it, a terrible village website, sidewalk chatter fills the void.

That should be WFB's New Year's Resolution:  Better communication.  If the newspapers won't do it, then updates should be plentiful on WFB's website.   Minutes of official meetings should be posted quickly, not two months after the fact.  When an issue, like Silver Spring or CVS comes up, a bulletin should be posted with all the relevant information and frequently asked questions.  That's how you combat public ignorance. 

Or how about .. start a blog!  Imagine what a few paragraphs each week from the Village President or Manager would do for information flow and community dialog!   

I went to the village board meeting tonight.

I admit, I've lived in the Bay for nearly a decade and have never felt the urge, whereby my desire to see our village government in action has ever outweighed my desire spend time with my family. Or watch TV. That too.

So I went with two motives, to see how the Great Trick-or-Treating debate turned out, but also to see what the Village Board does on a regular basis.

Ten minutes into the meeting, Katie Pritchard did a quick survey of the audience to determine who was here for the Great Trick or Treat Debate. I admit, I punted. I was not prepared to speak publicly.

Of course, I thought I'd done my part already. I'd written a blog entry, which subsequentially was published in the NorthshoreNOW newspaper and read by thousands. I'd also written an email to the Village Board Members, pleading my case. In honesty, I didn't think there was anything more for me to add. -- I'd stated my case.

Looks like I should have said something.. anything. Jim Roemer brought up the topic, mentioned the daylight savings time issue, and that perhaps the Trick-or-Treat time should be moved to 5-7. Two other trustees expressed a desire to have it remain 4-6, during full daylight. Roemer acquiesced, and that was it. No mention of returning the holiday to its rightful place: October 31st, on Halloween.

I admit that after the story ran in the newspaper, plus, and especially, my letter to the Board Members, I was disheartened that the topic of returning Halloween to October 31st didn't even get a mention. It didn't even get a "I got an email from this crank, some guy who wants to move it to Halloween." Nothing. Bupkis. Clearly, I believe it should have at least been given a moment of discussion. I can't count the number of times I was emailled or encouraged around my block on this subject. Looks like no one else followed suit.

Mental note, gotta be more organized next year.

CVS on Silver Spring?

Our Village Manager mentioned something interesting, that he'd received email from Villagers about the rumor that a CVS store was moving in on the corner of Silver Spring and Santa Monica. He said it was untrue. But then said CVS was looking at it. And that CVS had submitted a parking lot/driveway plan to the Village Engineer, who had rejected it.

So. Clearly, CVS is looking to move into the old Famous Footwear spot. First -- what happened to the other plan .. a developer was going to put in a 2 story building, a couple stores and a restaurant? What happened to that plan?

CVS is about the last company I'd like to see move in to that spot. First, because good lord, we are completely surrounded by pharmacies. CVS on Hampton, the new Walgreens on Port. Even Fitzgeralds is right on Silver Spring.

The situation at the moment is that CVS has looked at the property, but hasn't submitted a purchase plan to the Village. If that happens, it'd have a public hearing and go to the Planning Commission.

And if THAT happens, rise up, angry mob! Silver Spring needs a CVS like it needs another pothole.

JCC

I stuck around for another 90 minutes to see what else the Village Board would talk about. Apparently, the JCC wants to move some playground equipment, add some lights in dark spots, and change some landscaping.

I suddenly understood why there were 20-30 people at the meeting. I assume most of them were part of the JCC entourage of members, lawyers, engineers, landscapers and architects. Quite a show of force.

In the end, it was kind of sad. 3-4 years ago, Whitefish Bay tried to stop the JCC expansion, as the immediate neighbors were steadfast against it. My vague recollection was that once the Village turned the expansion down, the JCC hired lawyers and filed suit to overturn the will of the board, which, of course, worked.

So it was sad to hear (at least my assumption) that the neighbors around the JCC continue to be unhappy .. and that a business needs to petition the Village Board to add a few light bulbs. -- I'm not taking sides. I'm honestly sad with that whole situation. The neighbors shouldn't have to be irritated with increased traffic, noise, and light, and the JCC shouldn't have to be micro-managed to ask if they can put in some new swings on their playground.

Yes, yes, I fully understand how naïve I am.

The Village Board

One thing I do want to mention .. I was nearly completely impressed with the Village Board Members. Pritchard, Berg, Cheng, Fee, Schmidt, Roemer were serious, intelligent, professional, honest brokers for the Village.

So we've got that going for us.