Coker Decision op-Ed
From the "No Towers" Bulletin Board on August 14th, 2001
SILVER LINING?
-Bruce Spader
After the dust has settled, there can be a silver lining coming
out of the process that has been called Coker Towers.
People question more and more whether Raleigh is losing its heart
and soul. It certainly isnt, if residents are still willing to
organize themselves and stand up for what they believe are
substantive issues that impact their lives, as well as the
viability of their city.
Some voices have called this inside-the-beltline snobbery, but
such a process took place outside-the-beltline in Brentwood, over
recent years. A whole subdivision of around 5000 people was going
under, a violence prone nightclub killing one section, speeding
cut through traffic killing off several of the main residential
streets, etc. etc. It was only through Brentwood residents
organizing themselves and playing hardball with the powers that
be that that community was able to turn itself around.
Ideally, residents/communities, commercial interests and our
municipal government should be equal partners in shaping
Raleighs future. Partners jointly seeking what is best for all
stakeholders. That process doesnt really exist, at the moment.
That is what the Coker Towers process underscored, what the
battle for viability in Brentwood proved, and a whole lot of
other localized situations could be included here as well.
There is a structure in place called Citizen Advisory Councils
(CAC), however, these are much too broad in the geography covered
to embrace more localized issues. It is also questionable as to
what decision making input they in reality generate. Why else
would a No Towers group, or the Brentwood community choose to go
their own routes?
Our new City Council has an opportunity to fix procedures that
are clearly broken. Perhaps the CAC structure could be revamped
and be broken down into smaller areas to more truly reflect
individual communities within Raleigh? Perhaps CACs could be
plugged in as the first level of community/commercial interest
discussion, before proposals even reach the Planning Commission?
Or perhaps a whole new structure and organization might be drawn
up to better facilitate the processes of change and growth?
Clearly there are separate sets of interest that need to be met.
Residential communities need a sense of empowerment and control
over their life quality and future viability. Commercial
interests, on the other hand, need reliable procedures as
frameworks for their doing business. If both these interests can
be brought into harmony with each other, all come out winners.
This may be the lessons we are all learning from the Coker Towers
struggle, and the fights for viability of communities like
Brentwood. We can fix what is broken and move forward, and we
have the motivation before us to act, but it will take the
leadership of an enlightened City Council to do so.
