The Franklin Reporter & Advocate Eight Villages, One Community
By Bill Connell.
The Gazebo maintenance conversation in the Speak Out section caught my attention. It speaks to a bigger discussion that is always on my mind.
Before I get started, you need to know, I am an estimator for a living, for a very long time. So, when I see Public Works planting a tree or putting in a new curb, I instinctively add up the number of people and turn it into a cost per hour.
As an Open Space Committee member, we are annually presented an operating budget and a large amount of that is for Public Works to cut our grass lawns and maintain our grassland preserves and a plethora of other things, like empty our trash.
I am constantly asking for data and cross-referencing information to analyze if we are getting proper value for the money the Trust Fund contributes. In doing this I try to be fair and look at all sides. My conclusions are irrelevant to this missive.
Sometime recently I was in three different public meetings in one week. In all three, someone volunteered for Public Works to do something without benefit of discussing it with Public Works or a measurement of the actual work load it would add.
The Gazebo was a gift/donation, but unless it came with a maintenance escrow, it is not free. Every light, every plant, every bush added to is additional things that need to be cared for .
At the very least Public Works should empty the garbage cans, but how much more work for the gazebo should be added to their plate? Maybe all the politicians who use it to stump for votes or sway public opinion should take a little time and give the gazebo a little love.
I respect the people who wrote the letters, but the implication is that it all falls on Public Works. There is no reason a regular resident can’t spend an hour or two and help keep it up. I know this notion is old fashion but think about it.
