This morning Matt and I tried to correct recent inaccurate accounts about the initial attempt to push the UCD master plan for Clark Park. After I posted, I remembered an example at that meeting that reminded me of the important value of neighbor's telling their experiences publicly.
As I explained earlier, I believe Matt's motion to the FOCP members to reject the UCD master plan in 2001 would have passed had the slim majority not chosen to trust the assurances of the plan's proponents which turned out to be untrue. I'd like to share these damning stories that came out because our neighbors shared their stories. A proponent of the UCD plan was claiming that no one had raised objections before this general members meeting. (I had been told that Matt was a crazy troublemaker and that the community loved the plan and community process.) At the meeting, a neighbor said something like; but how were we supposed to contact you? The FOCP leader said something like; we set up a phone line and we had no contacts. The woman responded with something like, I called and called that number and no one answered and there was no answering machine. Another woman called out something like that's right I had the same experience. As I recall, we got that "little mistake by the hard working volunteers" excuse. But it was a powerful example of the importance of testaments that were coming out at that time about what we now recognize as the UCD process. I think this another example of the abusive processes that went into the original UCD plan and it also shows the importance for all citizens to courageously tell their stories. I honestly think the assurance of a better future process and no imminent threat of implementation caused the FOCP members to vote by a slim majority not to formally reject the UCD plan as unacceptable back in 2001. These claims that this was some popular widely approved plan is simply being done now because several years have passed. UCD considers us stupid people who will forget enough to allow this "alternative history" to help them get their way. Glenn
