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Toxic Residue

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THE SUNCOAST NEWS

Published: September 17, 2008

It has been nearly 18 months since a referendum calling for Port Richey to explore the idea of dissolving its charter went down to defeat at the polls. Clearly, however, not all of the rancor surrounding the latest attempt to do away with the city - there have been a number over the last three decades or so - has faded.

That was evident last week when the City Council had to call a timeout in its effort to create a committee that would review the city charter and possibly recommend changes. In many Suncoast municipalities such charter reviews are carried out on a fairly routine basis, usually every 10 years or so.

In doing so, most of these cities appoint a charter review committee. That's what the Port Richey council was trying to do last Tuesday night but couldn't get done. The fact that the Aug. 29 motion to move forward with the charter review only passed 3-2 telegraphed the difficulty surrounding the process.

As a "brutally honest" Councilman Perry Bean stated during the Sept. 9 council meeting, there are Port Richey residents he wouldn't want to see on a charter review committee. Such people are "more interested in the city's failure at this point than in the city's success," he said.

When Councilman Steven O'Neil suggested former City Attorney James Mathieu for the charter committee, Bean objected. Mathieu is "openly hostile" to the current city administration, Bean said.

Given that level of bad feelings, a Port Richey charter review should proceed with the greatest caution.

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