Viewpoint: So, What Was it Mr. Dinwiddie Said?

?Between in-person and ZOOM, about 100 people attended the Tuesday night Colorado City Metro District (CCMD) Open Forum in which Jim Dinwiddie brought a concept for the development of Colorado City to the public.

?Dinwiddie had appeared before the CCMD about a month ago, outlining a plan he has been working on for some time to the elected delegates of the community.

?The logical next step on any development of this type was to share it with the citizens. So, Dinwiddie was invited to present his thoughts and the proposal to interested people last Tuesday night.

??The purpose of the Viewpoint isn’t to repeat what is in the story elsewhere in this paper. The purpose of this Viewpoint is to, perhaps, give pause to Colorado City occupants and take a look at the Open Forum which CCMD plans to continue and determine how to make it valuable to everyone interested.

?An Open Forum is designed to give people an opportunity to present things they feel will benefit the community. The board may or may not be in favor of the proposal, but certainly feel that it should be presented to a broader forum.

??It would seem that, if the interests of the community were at heart, an open, ordered dialogue would be important in order to get as much information as possible. Although everyone should probably come with some questions, they should probably leave pre-conceived notions at home.

?Having listened to 60 minutes of the 90-minute forum, I know very little about what Mr. Dinwiddie was proposing. What I do know is that every time someone asked him a question, he was lucky to get out a few words in response before someone yelled over him. I really don’t know what he thinks.

??It wasn’t much better for the members of the audience. I watched one woman who patiently raised her hand for 50 minutes. When she finally got recognized and was given the go-ahead to share her thoughts, she was covered over by louder people. She quit raising her hand, and no one will ever know her thoughts.

??Many of the people in the room appeared to be hostile from the moment the forum began. Perhaps they have reasons. Unfortunately, their vocal hostility made it impossible for someone to draw their own opinion by being given a group of facts, thoughts or ideas to weigh and decide.

?Not that all is lost. The process for this kind of development is a long one, if it ever gets approved. There will be more opportunity for questions and answers, and thoughts and ideas.

??Mr. Dinwiddie repeated one question multiple times and in several ways. The question was, “What does the community want to see in the development of Colorado City over the next 20 years?”

??I’m not sure anyone ever answered that question.

??I used to watch all of the debates that helped determine the next president of the United States. But somewhere along the way we got lost. The national debates have deteriorated into who can yell the loudest, make the most faces, interrupt their opponent and continue talking when their time is up.

??Like the CCMD forum of Tuesday night, when I turn off the debates, I know less than when I turned them on.

??I certainly have opinions about the development of Colorado City. I feel if we never grow, we will die. But I also think growth has to be planned, directed to meet as many needs of as many people as possible. In order to do that wouldn’t it be wise to hear what everyone has to say?

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