The Good & Welfare portion of any Huntington city council meeting is my favorite.  Though it’s after all other agenda items have been discussed and/or voted upon, it usually worth the wait.  This is the portion when council members and citizens can speak their mind on any subject.

                I’ve heard a lot of great comments from people addressing the council, including poems from Mary Anderson to Bill Polan telling the council they ought to “line you up against the wall and shoot every damn one of you.”   Polan was talking about how difficult it is for handicap people to traverse the 8^th Street viaduct and how it was council’s responsibility to provide for safe passage.  Chuck Polan was council chairman at the time.

                The Good & Welfare provides some insight on future agenda items.  It brings out the best and worst of us all.  At last Monday’s meeting, Councilman Tom McCallister and council chairman Cal Kent were at it again.  McCallister had the floor and was discussing his views on the sewer rate increase and the Olympic Pool.  Other councilmen were talking while McCallister had the floor.  He protested.  Kent tried to slough it off.  Councilman Mallot said “it was the only chance I get to say anything.”

                “Hold it down you guys so that Tom can speak,” said Kent.  He didn’t tell them they couldn’t’ talk while McCallister had the floor.  He just told them to hold it down.  McCallister reminded Kent that it was his duty as chairman to see that the meeting be conducted in an orderly manner.

                The same thing happened again.  When McCallister protested, Kent told him to proceed.  “Mr. Chairman, I’m going to have to bite my lip, but I’m going to try to be a little more composed than usual.  I absolutely demand that we show a respect to one another here, and that’s absolute,” said McCallister.  Not that McCallister hasn’t ever interrupted other council members.  Big time.  Usually though, when McCallister interrupts someone, he’s ruled out of order.  By the amended rules of council adopted last year, anyone ruled out of order can potentially be removed from the meeting by the Sergeant-of-Arms.  This has yet to happen.  McCallister went on to speak his mind without interruption.

Councilman John Daniels asked the mayor to get hold of the state Department of Highways to get them to fix the potholes on Adams Avenue.  Councilman Charlie Thompson asked the mayor to fix the potholes from 9^th Avenue from 5^th Street to 1^st Street.  “Those holes are getting pretty bad down there,” said Thompson.  Mayor David Felinton said that on every dry day the city crew is out there patching the holes.  “The end of hot patch season is looking us in the face, so we certainly want to do all that we can before the bad weather hits,” said Felinton.

Councilman Jim Ritter and Kent commented on the letter from the new manager of the Big Sandy Super Store Civic Arena that said it was operating under budget.  “It indicated that there’s going to be a reduced budget request for next year and I do think that’s a monumental achievement out there,” said Kent.

                McCallister asked Felinton to put to use the one street sweeper the city has to clean the streets.  “Something has to happen, the town is looking seriously filthy,” he said.  Mayor Felinton said the street sweeper is being used, but not as often as in the past.

                “Unfortunately, we have to slowly build back our services, and with one truck and a limited amount of manpower in the street department….this is one of the prices we pay,”  answered Felinton.

                Huntington resident John Queen thanked the mayor and Kent for the patching on Lower Terrace and Forrest Park Lane, but said that recent rains are washing it all away.  Queen said there was no drainage at the top of Forest Park Lane.  He said the water drains into three of the street’s resident’s houses and it is also destroying the road.  Queen also told the mayor he was sorry that the mayor didn’t care about his vote.

                Queen asked if the city received a breakdown of the city’s medical costs charged to the city by St. Mary’s and Cabell-Huntington Hospital.  Queen asked if the council or the administration reviewed the charges.

                “We have a firm, as I understand it, that reviews all of the bills that come through,” answered Kent.  “I’m not sure who it is, but I at one time did know exactly who it was,” Kent said.  Queen asked if any members of council requested the information from the Felinton administration.  “Not to my knowledge,” answered Kent.  Queen pointed out to the council that a good place to start on budget cutting would be looking at the city’s medical costs.  Kent said he didn’t see where that would make a difference which hospital a city employee went to.

                “Because there’s a deal, Dr. Kent that…one hospital waives the deductible and the other one don't,”  alleged Queen.  “The point of this is that if we’re going to turn this city around, we need to start not looking at what actuaries tell us, not looking at what vendors tell us…because a vendor is only going to be as good as you make them be.  We need to start putting a focus on that, and that falls to you,” said Queen.

                Lura Miller pressed for information on the $3.5 million in bonds the Sanitary Board is preparing to ask the city council to float.  She asked how the bonds would be paid off.  “Ultimately, if you’re going to issue long term bonds you’re either going to have to raise rates or you’re going to have to cut expenses,” answered Kent.

                John Vance asked what contracts to date have been signed concerning the Pullman Square project.  “To may knowledge the only contracts that are actually in force right now are the contracts with the TTA on the building of the parking facilities which you can see going up,” answered Kent.

                Vance asked if residents and businesses are being charged by the city when the police respond to the alarms the residents have installed.  City ordinance requires a charge for an answer to a security alarm.  Felinton said the ordinance was being enforced.  Vance disagreed.

 “I do know there is one out in my neighborhood that goes off frequently and so if it is being enforced those people are paying out a lot of money,” said Kent.  “I do think that would be worth looking into to see what enforcement level the fines on that are,”  he said.  He asked the mayor to look into the matter.