Column: The spirit of Yogi Berra visits us in Portage County
By Dan Kontos
The late great baseball legend and philosopher Yogi Berra once said, “It’s deja vu all over again.”
Well, that’s certainly true for the Portage County Board of Supervisors, as they once again revisit the never-ending issue of county buildings.
On July 12, the county’s Space and Properties Committee approved a pair of resolutions to once again study and plan for some sorely-needed real property improvements. The question is not whether there is a real need for this. There absolutely is.
Look, at the risk of sounding conceited, you would be very hard-pressed to find anyone in the county, not working in government today, that has more intimate knowledge of this issue than I do. I have worked on this matter for years and have logged hundreds and hundreds of hours dealing with the problem of the county’s space needs.
I can confidently say that this predicament does need to be solved. The situation is only getting worse, and the costs certainly are not going down. You can take my word on this, or not; that’s fine. I, however, am firmly convinced of it. If you want to have a discussion on the particulars, we can do that too, just not right now.
That being said, it’s not the financials that are the problem, or the property available, or any other tangible obstacle that stands in the way. Honestly, it’s the County Board.
The question of county real estate and facilities has been a concern for (wait for it…) decades. Portage County has commissioned over a dozen studies and spent almost $500,000 looking into this issue. Now, here we go again. The $30,000 proposal would once more look at what already is commonly known, there is a problem. It was Yogi who once said, “The future ain’t what it used to be.” Oh, that’s so true.
The rub comes when the 25 members of the Board are asked to make a decision. This is a complex issue, for sure. However, if history is any teacher, the supervisors rarely show the intestinal fortitude to put in the time and effort to educate themselves. Many have never even toured all of the facilities that the county has, let alone spent the time to learn about the unique challenges that this problem presents.
Let me be fair, this is not the case for all of the supervisors. Some have dove in headfirst, put the time in, and understand the issues quite well. Who are they? Well, you have only to look at the frustration in their faces, and weariness in their eyes every time this issue comes up. You can simply put ditto marks down when describing the county’s staff as well. A staff that has literally wasted countless hours chasing a concept down a rabbit hole, just to have it filled in behind them.
For many, they have learned that the best part about beating your head against a brick wall is when you stop. However, Yogi’s advice rings true still today when he said, “It ain’t over ’til it’s over.”
Why is this such an issue? Why is this so hard? Let me explain it to you. It’s fear. Fear of being criticized by a vocal “not a dime” crowd. Fear of losing their precious county board seat at the next election, even though they usually run unopposed. Fear of being forced to study the issue—put some real time in to educate themselves, and do more than simply open their meeting agendas the day of their next monthly gathering.
But Dan, the people spoke on this already. They rejected new construction in a 2016 non-binding referendum.
That’s true, but why was there even a referendum? The answer is fear. The leadership at the time knew darn well that the issue would be voted down, especially after deliberately poisoning the waters of public opinion, and misrepresenting the facts. They knew they could hide behind a referendum, and then slow-walk the issue until they left office. Can’t criticize me, I just voted the way you wanted me to. Unfortunately, the problem just continues to get worse.
It was fundamentally unfair to ask the public to vote on such a complex issue. A public that all but universally ignored any attempt to present information to them, and who could not be expected to put the time in to really understand the issue. That’s what the supervisors are elected to do. Sadly, many of them just fail to do their jobs.
You see, the county government is not a democracy. We elect representatives to put in the time and effort to know about these issues. Some supervisors are fantastic and really do right by the voters. Others are just along for the ride, conflicted, or just plain afraid to be criticized.
Fear, exacerbated by the two-year board election cycle, and the need for a super-majority to approve the financials, makes this issue a difficult one to solve. And even so, it should require deliberative contemplation. We should not cheer on a process that rams through such an impactful course of action without looking at the whole picture.
But, please, can we stop throwing good money after bad? Can we finally do something?
Oh, we have come close at times. We passed haughty sounding resolutions that direct action by a time certain, just to watch that evaporate into the ether like the resolve of a first-time skydiver who suffers from a fear of heights. Poof, it’s gone. We purchased property to facilitate new construction, and yet years later we are still in the real-estate business, I guess.
Yet the problem gets worse. As Yogi would put it, “We made too many wrong mistakes.”
What’s my advice to the County Board? Thanks for asking.
First, remember that you were elected to make the big decisions, not just parrot what understandably but inexorably under-informed constituents think you should do. The issue is too complex for a cursory understanding. That is your job.
Second, commit to putting in the time and effort to actually learn about the issue. You won’t solve this in a committee meeting or two. Stop taking a position until you know the facts. Yogi tells us that, “You can observe a lot by watching.”
Third, stop trying to collaborate with the City of Stevens Point, which has thwarted every attempt the county has ever made in this area. Remember the Highway 66 property, or the mandatory downtown component, property swaps, or the threats to withhold permits? Fool me once… you know the thing.
I no longer have a dog in this fight, except for my property taxes. They will go up, for sure. I understand that. But if we want to stem the bleeding and actually make government work more efficiently, the Board has to put on their big boy and girl pants and do something.
Remember the famous words of Yogi Berra, “When you come to a fork in the road, take it.”
So, with that, let’s meet in the opinion section to talk about all of it, boldly, unafraid, and with a healthy respect for each other. Until then, God bless.
Dan Kontos is a paid columnist for the Metro Wire. He chooses his own topics and his opinions do not necessarily represent the staff of the Metro Wire. He lives with his family in Whiting.
Interested in becoming a columnist for the Metro Wire? Email [email protected].