Puppet Master
To the editor:
Here is what I see. There is a puppet master, the city manager. He makes about $350,000 per year.
Then there are City Council members. Their salary is $32,600 per year, (the Mayor’s salary is about $37,000.)
The Council members answer directly to their constituents, while the puppet master hides in the background. The Council members figure that the puppet master makes all the money so he should do the work to make the plan. He does… his vision. It is not our vision, it is his vision. He wants us to look like the east coast…hotels, water features, contemporary parks etc.
We want more of a simple look… Matlacha type art areas, simple beaches, with clean water, a fishing pier, areas to bring our 20-foot boats, parks with old trees in them so we can walk our dogs without a $12,000,000 price tag, maybe some small gift shops and hanging baskets in the center of town.
We don’t want tourist attractions or marinas for fast boats and yachts. We are a working community, on a budget and we would like to keep it that way.
The Council members have given up their power and kowtowed to the city manager. After all, he makes the money. They also stopped looking at the puppet master’s plan. They have forgotten that they are our only connection to the city government. They have forgotten that the puppet master is the taker of the money, not the source. We are.
We can’t touch the master. But they can.
They must cut the marionette strings and take back their power for us. They must come up with plans within our budget for us.
Marian Torbeck
Cape Coral