Editor:
At the City Council meeting July 26, ex-mayor Kevin McKeown, in an effort to equate modern aviation with bygone railroad technology, let off some steam of his own. While he justly points out that steam engines are no longer appropriate for 21st century railroads, he remains a big fan of railroads as transportation, which he has made clear with his support of Metro light rail.
That is just the point. Infrastructures evolve to take advantage of gains in technology. They only become obsolete if they are not maintained and improved by those responsible for them.
Rick Cole, the city manager, refined his own comments to declare that the airport is “functionally” obsolete, which it is most certainly not. It functions very well indeed. Today, our airport, like all modes of transportation, is cleaner, quieter, more efficient, safer, and more profitable than in the past. It's what we call progress.
Recalling the ex-mayor's own words, what is “an outdated remnant of the past” is just this brand of unenlightened governance based in part on representatives elected “at large,” and furthermore, what is “functionally obsolete” in this town is the notion that it is OK to spend taxpayer money hiring individuals like Nelson Hernandez and outside companies to attack the City's own infrastructure — squandering millions of dollars rather than investing them for our future.
Ask yourself: Who has the loco motives here?
Bill Worden
Venice
