Put some meat on those bones, mayor

Today's print column

The mayor's speech was well-received, but it should have been riskier.

I'm not saying that Mayor Ron Corbett should have added dangerous stunts, expletives or a wardrobe malfunction to his State of the City speech. He was, however, in real danger of being crushed by a very large pile of metaphors, famous quotations and anecdotes.

Auto racing, three-legged stools, Freddie Mercury, Mother Teresa and Pearl Harbor?

Forget it, the mayor's on a roll.

Clearly, Corbett said a lot in 38 minutes. The city is like a race car on a curve, ready to hit the gas and make its move. It's time to get out of our comfort zones. It's fashionable to smack at government, but it still delivers drinking water, treats sewage and plows snow. Judging by the applause, people really like water and plowed snow.

But at its core, this speech was a sales pitch for the city's contention that Cedar Rapids truly needs a 20-year penny sales tax to help pay for a $375 million flood protection system. Corbett spent a lot of time methodically trying to make that case, wrapped in an emotional appeal to be “our brothers' keeper.”

But he was strongest when he explored the real risks and consequences of doing nothing. He touched on the potential for decay in the city's core that could have consequences for citizens who live far beyond the flood zone.

“Mother Nature is a formidable opponent,” Corbett said. “She has a way of getting the best of you. Last time we were unprepared. Do we really want to be defenseless the next time?

“What happens to the value of property if it can't be protected ... We all know the answer: It will depreciate. Would you invest? This leads to a downward spiral of depreciation and decay. The core of our city deteriorates. The tax base in flood areas falls and gets shifted to you. This also leads to sprawl.”

Unfortunately, the guy who joked about gaining 15 pounds last year didn't put more meat on these bones.

Voters need to understand the risks, and, more specifically, about what will happen if protection doesn't happen or if it's scaled back. The mayor may believe everyone understands the consequence of inaction, but that's a stretch.

How exactly would property values and taxes be impacted? Can the loss of investment be quantified? If severe flooding happens again, what would losses be this time and how would recovery be different? And what about the impact of Cedar Rapids' protection system downstream?

Good speech. Nice metaphors. Now we need details.

Comments: (319) 398-8452; todd.dorman@sourcemedia.net