Prioritize

Municipal government works best when the community is involved. Officials’ jobs are made easier when the people make their wants and needs known — assuming, of course, that those officials are responsive to the wishes of those who elected them.

The public forums held this past week as part of “Imagine Brownsville” should give our civic leaders more information on what direction residents want to take when mapping out the city’s future.

Such public forums have been held periodically; indeed, a similar effort Brownsville 2020, has been under way for some time, and, in like fashion, collected public comments regarding their needs and wants. Other forums were held when the Brownsville Community Improvement Corp. was established to utilize one-fourth of a cent of the city’s tax revenue for community improvement projects.

The lists have all been similar, even redundant; most people remain concerned about basic infrastructure needs, such as smooth roads, adequate drainage and competent, responsive law enforcement and emergency departments. Other items represent a wish list from individuals and groups wanting attention and funding for the various projects they consider important, from beautification to entertainment venues.

All items would improve the city, to varying degrees. It must be remembered, however, that all these efforts take money, and most of the time they take local government out of the limited realm of services they should render to the community. Few people would argue that elected officials aren’t in the best position to oversee common needs and grounds, such as free roadways and public protection We should let our officials focus on those limited tasks and do them well, without so many other, unnecessary, demands.

Most projects are handled more efficiently outside of government, which always feeds itself before releasing any resources for their intended purpose. Project proponents simply find it easier to get their friends in government to use their power to take money from unwitting residents, rather than try to convince individuals to fund their projects privately.

That doesn’t make it the right thing to do.

Even those who are asking for special favors and allocations hate to see their tax bills go up. They should recognize the universality of those feelings, and help the city prioritize the goals that come out of the Imagine Brownsville and Brownsville 2020 projects.

Beautification efforts and other endeavors, however, probably could be handled more efficiently without relying on City Hall. With a little thought effort, community groups could recruit community volunteers — Scouting organizations looking for service projects, for example — and get the job done more quickly and efficiently, without hurting the taxpayers. Such projects could also raise community spirit as well.

Focused attention on the most necessary issues can help this city develop better and faster, and could make secondary goals more attainable down the road. In the process we could come to realize that we can take care of many items on our wish list ourselves, without government holding our hand.