Who's in charge here?

One need only look to the RFP for Lower bog to realize there there is little or no accountability in town government.

About 3-1/2 years ago, the selectmen appointed the Coonamessett River [Restoration] Working Group (CRRWG) to develop a restoration and management plan for the river. That plan was due in one year.

Supposedly we had a plan - town meeting voted on it, right? - but this week, the selectmen are reviewing a draft Request For Proposals (RFP) to restore Lower bog. Essentially, there is no restoration and management plan, and the town is putting it out to bid.

Wasn't that the job of the CRRWG? What have they been doing for the last 3-1/2 years?

Likewise, I've never seen the selectmen attend a conservation commission meeting unless they wanted to say something. I suspect that it is the same for the other boards and committees.

Twice every year, my boss reviews my work. Goals are set, feedback is provided and in six months we do it all over again. Anyone who's had, or conducted, these employee reviews knows that this is an important part of making sure that 1) I'm doing my job, 2) I have the resources necessary to do my job, and 3) that any issues can be addressed and corrected before they get out of control.

Yet the selectmen never do this with the various boards they appoint. There is little, if any, oversight, and the end result is some rather sticky situations.

For example, last year the Bikeways Committee apparently threatened some residents of Beagle Lane with an eminent domain taking of their road. Aside from the fact that those residents like having a private road, the Bikeways Committee has no authority whatsoever to take any property by eminent domain.

A few years back, a member of the CRRWG publicly chastised a member of the audience for asking the entirely innocent question, "Why is the Coonamessett called a river?" The rant was so bad that a town employee followed the questioner out to apologize.

The selectmen will say that they dealt with these situations, but in each case the horse was already out of the barn, which is another, common theme that I keep hearing. The selectmen are in full reaction mode.

That's a subject (proactive) for a different posting, but it is fair to say that there needs to be more accountability. We need to do a better job of making sure the various town boards that report to the selectmen are doing what they're supposed to do. Nothing more. Nothing less.

We CAN do better.