On Tue, 15 Jun 2004 03:51:11 GMT, "Jay Honeck"
wrote:

Depression and despair rule the roost tonight in Iowa City.

After all the meetings attended, and all the editorials rebutted, and all
the interviews granted, and all the letters written -- our City Council
called a sudden, surprise joint meeting with our Airport Commission tonight,
and announced their intention of putting the dissolution of our independent
Airport Commission to a voter's referendum on the November ballot.

This signals the end of our airport, plain and simple. The independent
airport commission was set up after World War II SPECIFICALLY to protect the
airport from the political whims and vagaries of subsequent city
governments, and now the council has indicated that they intend to dissolve
the only body that protects our airport from the land developers and noise
nazis.

I knew when I found the meeting agenda on the city website this afternoon
(posted just hours before the meeting) -- and it listed NO topic for
discussion -- that we were in deep ****.

I believe this is illegal. There are rules for notice of public
meetings. My town has a 7 day notice I believe. You should find out
what it is, and if they violated it persue negating any and all
progress stemming from that meeting. You may need to do this in
court, but it seems well worth it.

Boy, were we ever.

Upon hearing about this (almost by accident, from a connection deep within
the bureaucracy) I immediately sent a bulletin email out to the "Friends of
Iowa City Airport" mailing list -- but it was too late.

We only managed to
get about ten members to attend, and there was no opportunity for public
comment.
This is completely illegal. If it is a public meeting, the public
needs a forum to speak. This can be strictly controlled, and
unrealistic time limits can be set, but they have to allow you to
speak! If you don't have a lawyer in the group you may want to
consult one. He can help try to put an end to this type of activity.


We just had to sit there and take it, while they spewed their
political lies and slanted bull crap about how this change would "help the
airport in the long run"...

I'm tired, man. We fight, and fight, and fight, and we defeat them at every
logical level, both publicly and privately -- and then they pull together a
sneak attack like this. Hell, even the airport manager -- a city
employee! -- didn't know about this meeting until last Friday, and he didn't
know what it was going to be about until he walked in the door and was
broadsided.

I know what you'll say: Call AOPA. Hell, they're no help -- our local
"representative" is a commercial pilot -- who, in 7 years, I've never even
MET -- who only wants that title on his resume. I'm at the airport every
god danged day of my life, and I couldn't pick this guy out of a line-up...
Helluva job he's doing.

We are soooo screwed.


I'm sorry for these events. You do have recourse. It may be a little
costly, but I believe it is worth it. Legislators should not be
allowed to bend the rules to suit their own desires. There is a
political process for a reason. If you can defeat them within that
process, they should listen and adhere to what the public needs. Good
luck. I hope you wake up with new fight and can start pushing back on
what seems to be a railroad job.

z