Antone's Nightclub
Boards and Commissions' Failures
RECEIVED Fri., Jan. 30, 2009
Dear Editor,
I almost did not read the article about Austin boards and commissions [“A Cacophony of Passions,” News, Jan. 30] because it reminds me again of the failure of our city government to understand the problems in my area of Austin. It is another reminder that Southeast Austin is not represented in city government, while other areas are overrepresented. The Southeast area continues to be neglected because we have no voice on the City Council. I have applied several times over the years to various boards, and I have never been contacted about participating. I looked at the membership of the boards your article listed as first tier. It only takes a few minutes to type the names into the Travis County voter registration search to find where they claim to reside. (One member of the Board of Adjustment shows his residence at a business address, and several board members are apparently not voters or property owners.) Most of those found are residing in West Austin, coincidentally where almost all the City Council members in the last 20 years have lived. Several come from just a few ZIP codes (i.e., 78704). This is another example of the way the politically powerful, privileged few control the city government and resources and why we should have voted for single-member City Council districts.
I almost did not read the article about Austin boards and commissions [“A Cacophony of Passions,” News, Jan. 30] because it reminds me again of the failure of our city government to understand the problems in my area of Austin. It is another reminder that Southeast Austin is not represented in city government, while other areas are overrepresented. The Southeast area continues to be neglected because we have no voice on the City Council. I have applied several times over the years to various boards, and I have never been contacted about participating. I looked at the membership of the boards your article listed as first tier. It only takes a few minutes to type the names into the Travis County voter registration search to find where they claim to reside. (One member of the Board of Adjustment shows his residence at a business address, and several board members are apparently not voters or property owners.) Most of those found are residing in West Austin, coincidentally where almost all the City Council members in the last 20 years have lived. Several come from just a few ZIP codes (i.e., 78704). This is another example of the way the politically powerful, privileged few control the city government and resources and why we should have voted for single-member City Council districts.
Glen Shield