Letter had spin from city hall

I was surprised with his open bashing of The Davison Index, especially having read some of Mr. McKague’s blog postings. The political spin of the letter is obviously that of city hall.

In response to Mr. McKague’s first question, yes, the so-called "beautification project" has caused a negative impact on local business. For example, I don’t go to bars, however a lot of people do. I also know that St. Patrick’s Day is one of the busiest bar business days of the year. Was it "poor planning," "lack of planning" or "selective planning" by city officials to close Main Street in front of the downtown Davison Hotel bar on this most important bar business day? Could one question if the timing was used to nail the coffin shut of a struggling downtown business that may not be viewed as appropriate to "beautification" by some?

Those who think local business owners are rich have never owned a business. Most small business owners fight a constant battle of income against expenses. Forcing additional expense on these business owners with a "beautification project" could cause some to throw in the towel and close.

I remember fighting Genesee County Parks and Recreation and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources over the gun range proposed for the Hogbacks. There was a continuous effort by the government machine to characterize our group as just disgruntled citizens fighting the project for selfish personal reasons.

Mr. McKague’s letter reflects just this government mantra. Using Mr. McKague’s logic, the "blog" written by the "City Manager and Blogger" (I did not write this title; Mr. Auger displays it on his blog home page next to his photo) should be considered a waste of taxpayers money as it appears to be the personal/political opinion of its writer.

The bashing of The Davison Index as it appears in the city manager’s blog does not support any business need of the city.

Writing a "personal blog" at the expense of the taxpaying public with the intention of promoting an agenda is not the best use of the community’s time and money. If the city manager were an elected person, one could argue he is "campaigning" at taxpayer expense, a violation of several laws.

What The Davison Index does with a staff of two reporters is amazing. I know when they cannot attend a meeting of the Richfield Township Board, they will get the tapes the next day and take the time to listen to them, then report what happened at the meeting. This is not possible in the city of Davison with the new rules of meeting reporting and no recording device at the meetings.

I like the local reporting of The Davison Index. While I don’t always agree with the columns in the Index, they are a reflection of the "opinion" of the editor or writer. I wonder if Mr. McKague and the city are having a hard time separating the two when the message is not one they wish to hear.

Don Dunklee
Richfield Township