Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, May 26, 1994 TAG: 9405310141
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-16 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Nope. By a 3-2 vote, the supervisors this week tabled the idea for a month, after four distinct schools of thought - not bad for a five-member board - emerged on this momentous subject.
The four schools:
Just Do It.
This is the Ross Perot-like, bipartisan position of Supervisors Bob Johnson (Democrat) and Fuzzy Minnix (Republican). They wanted (reasonably) to extend the board's hand of fellowship, and voted against tabling the motion.
It Might Be OK But Only If It's Unanimous.
This is the position of board Chairman Lee Eddy, who on that basis voted to keep said hand in the board's pocket. But either way, the vote wouldn't be unanimous. Eddy did not explain why split-vote silliness is preferable to split-vote common sense.
If It Isn't Perfect, It Isn't OK.
This is the position of Supervisor Harry Nickens, for whom perfection would be having more localities (i.e., Salem and Vinton) but fewer people (i.e., not the entire governing bodies) at the session. Fine, but should that forestall a get-acquainted session between the elected governing bodies of the valley's two largest localities?
It's Not OK, It Is OK, It's Not OK ...
This is the position(s) of Supervisor Ed Kohinke.
In a May 9 memo to the other supervisors, he doubted the wisdom of a meeting with City Council, arguing that "our joint meetings with other bodies are almost always non-productive." He predicted that "one or two politicians will treat it as a media event for their personal agenda," and said "cooperation 'summits' should include everybody" in the valley.
In a May 18 letter accepting appointment to the Regional Government Cooperation Team of the New Century Council, Kohinke reversed course: "We supervisors will consider on May 24, 1994, a resolution to hold a joint meeting with Roanoke City Council, which I support." (In copies faxed to this newspaper, he added that "if you plan to do another story on co-operation and Bob [Johnson's] proposal, I'd appreciate a mention of my support for it.")
On Tuesday night, he voted against it.
Complicating this strange business is speculation that Johnson may run for state Senate and might be attempting to gain credit for a cooperative attitude, a disposition more politically helpful perhaps in the city than in the county.
The merits of a meeting, though, are surely separable from the motives for it. And political posturing has always complicated city-county cooperation; it has never been a simple matter.
Indeed, if cooperation were routine, the county would have to cooperate with itself. And Kohinke would have to cooperate with himself.
by CNB