The mayor decided today to retain two mayoral advocates: Ken Nicolet and Cherise Dixie. It was the right move. He deserves some credit for a mess he created.
During the budget hearings council president Tom Smith and member Tom Didier pushed to cut two of the four mayoral advocate positions. There was support for cutting all four, but in the end the committee voted to cut just two.
Glynn Hines, you may remember, voted against the cut at the committee level and then held up passage of the full budget in an effort to restore the two positions. Glynn waited for Smith or Didier to fold, but Tom Didier surprised most in the room by accepting a different compromise and, in a stroke, by-passed Glynn’s maneuver. The budget passed, Glynn fumed.
So, the pressure has been on the mayor from active city neighborhoods to keep Ken Nicolet and Cherise Dixie. The other two advocates, Zenovia Pearson and Denise Porter Ross, has less vocal support. It happens that Pearson was the advocate in Didier’s district to the northwest of the city, and Porter-Ross was the advocate for the northeast of the city, including Smith’s district. Pearson and Porter-Ross were the issue. In reassigning the two women Mayor Henry acknowledged the obvious and retained the two advocates with general support. But, the two women merely crystallized the underlying problem which the mayor has created: the purpose of the advocates.
Years ago the positions were known as citizen’s advocates, Tom Henry calls them mayor’s advocates. You can easily understand the difference. As one administration manager told me the mayor needs his advocates to get the word out about his positions on issues…say, casinos, or garbage contracts, or buying real estate, Calhoun Street, or I&M. John Shoaff also noticed this change and suggests the emphasis of the advocates should again be on assessing the needs of the neighborhoods and getting that information to the various offices that can solve it: potholes, curbs, sidewalks, drainage, etc. Smith noted that the 311 system would suffice to replace all of the mayor’s advocates, a message Mayor Henry should consider when giving his charge to the two remaining advocates. Come next budget session, Smith may go after the two remaining positions if they continue to talk down to him and other council members.
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Jim:
What I find amusing about this (and the Henry administration has demonstrated it\’s ability to make people burst into uncontrollable laughter), is that the TWO SOUTH SIDE \"advocates\" were the ones retained.
Guess all you people UP NORTH can speak up for your OWN selves…congrats!
Ken Nicolet used to work for the street department I believe, so he seems to have an \"in\" with the \"king\".
As for Cherise Dixie…TOTAL waste of time and resources.
Never returned emails, JUST like her predecessor, Brent DuFor.
But I guess some of us are just NOT the correct \"color\", because it seems that ONLY those are the ones who get ANYONE\’S ear, especially when threats of lawsuits are mentioned against the city.
At least Porter-Ross and Pearson DID something.
I find the BEST way is to simply BYPASS these advocates and go DIRECTLY to whatever source you need…and be prepared to bitch…a lot.
Fortunatelty, some city departments really LISTEN to people, and are willing to follow up on things you need addressed.
As for Glynn Hines…ROFLMAO…good for \’ya, serves \’ya right.
Don\’t see a lot of \"hope and change\" (except for the worse) in OUR neighborhood, thanks to \"your vision\", Glynn…better get those glasses checked…you need a prescription update.
Well, Bob, a couple of thoughts. There is an event monthly called the president’s meeting at which all the presidents of established neighborhoods are invited. Last one, not unlike the preceeding few, was 85% populated by those from the southwest quadrant, that would be where Ken Nicolet works. I receive something from him everyday concerning the city, by email. He eschews wasting paper, which I appreciate. Those who work regularly with city government value Ken’s work over those of the other three advocates, especially the two who were to have represented the northern half of the city. They were, in the eyes of the swing votes on council, the problem. They represented just the mayor, not the neighborhoods. They were mayor’s advocates, not neighborhood advocates. Ms. Dixie came in second. Her neighborhoods were more active because she worked to bring them to the table. Nicolet, however, was head and shoulders above the rest and I feel he has represented me, my neighborhood and our interests at least as well as he has spoken on behalf of the administration. Usually, he does not speak about an administration perspective, but rather takes questions, resolves problems, connects me with the right department, etc. I have been quite happy with his work and am glad the mayor chose him to continue the liaison between our active neighborhoods and city offices. I could go on about city offices. Chad Tinkel in Parks is super, the guy from the sign shop, Mr. Pepper, is beyond first rate, great guy, others are the same. Then there are the likes of Tom Cain and others who think they know better than we unwashed masses and were trained to see themselves as the real authorities and the public process as window dressing. Nicolet is good. I am glad he is my advocate.