The big non-descript building is pretty visible to the many joggers, walkers and bicyclists just east of the city. The building appears to be causing complications for people now. At the very least, the City of Morris has not been communicating well enough. And in cases where communication is clearly insufficient, maybe something more troubling is happening underneath.
As always we must look at motivations. Government mandates, perhaps? The mayor tells me "the state deemed it appropriate to pay for approximately two-thirds of our water treatment system to eliminate or drastically reduce the chloride outflow to the Pomme de Terre River. If those numbers don't come down, and I'm pretty serious about this, we will need to enforce, and be sure that people are following the rules about water softeners and their salt usage."
When government gets "very serious," I guess we all need to drop what we're doing. One city official in remarks to me acted like he wanted no association with the newspaper article Tuesday about this. The article's language jumped out at me as I sensed an onerous tone. Might something like "the Gestapo" be coming after us, if we're still using our old water softeners? And I ask again: How old is old? When you get legal about all this, as the mayor is projecting, you'd better come forward with specifics.
The mayor shared concern with me about what some water quality companies are charging for a simple visit. The mayor's "anger" isn't going to resolve the issue.
I thought at the start of all this, or I assumed, that the city would have people ready to send out in an official capacity, to make sure we'd do the right thing. Otherwise we are at the mercy of the water quality companies which our esteemed mayor seems to feel might have predatory inclinations. There's a crux of the problem: the City of Morris vs. the private water quality companies.
At present I have purchased an on-demand water softener and I had mixed feelings at the time of installation. The cost was $1500 for which I could have bought many sacks of salt, as I told the city manager. I don't wish to suggest any less than virtuous motives by anyone involved in this process. But there are clearly contradictions. I'm inclined to wrinkle my forehead as I review the first sentence of an email I received from the city manager a few days ago. "I'm not sure what to tell you."
If I can't get background of an authoritative nature from this source, I'm rather agitated. The city manager continued: "If the Eco Water person told you that you couldn't get by without a new softener, that was not correct. It was a sales pitch."
Wow, so unequivocal and finger-pointing. Now we're getting into "controversy" territory. Might the water quality company consider a lawsuit based on this clear aspersion? Well, I subsequently called the water quality company in a frame of mind to be confrontational with them, the type of thing I am not inclined to do. I got a very passionate person on the other end of the phone who struck me as credible and sincere. She gave me her name and told me to call back if I had any more questions or concerns.
Right now my "gut" is telling me to trust this company and that person, rather than the city. That's unfortunate.
I'm suspicious about something else in the email I received from the city manager. Here goes: "Two city council members have disconnected their softeners." Really? If the city is so unreservedly telling everyone to just disconnect their softeners, why have only two council members chosen to do this? We can't resist thinking that the city is just desperate to get the chloride levels down, never mind that some issues might be created for homeowners.
The city won't take responsibility for the newspaper article that suggested the Gestapo might be coming. The paper is not part of government, it is a private business that makes money selling advertising. It's probably best to disregard the newspaper and go straight to people within the City of Morris. They are the ones responsible for confusing us so far.
If it was such a total no-brainer for everyone to just disconnect their softener, why didn't they just start yelling this from the rooftop some time ago? Then I would have just asked a water quality company to come to my house and disconnect, and could disregard any opinions they might want to have. Or to use the city manager's words, the "sales pitch."
People in government must be careful about disparaging local private businesses. The businesses have more incentive to be responsible than the government. So why isn't the city shouting from the rooftop as it were? It would make so much sense. And the newspaper should not carry the mantle with this, it should be the city itself.
Maybe the city has legal counsel advising that the government not give such a clear-cut directive as to ditch your softener. Maybe there's a legal risk because if people notice water quality problems - something which the water quality companies seem to be assuming will happen - people will allege being misled. Water quality is quite connected to our quality of life. We have dishwashers, showers, hot water heaters etc. If you have "perfect" water now, as I was told my family did, do you want to risk being dropped down a notch or two? Are you ready for those consequences, really?
As I went through my process of confusion, I had a Kinetico rep come and do absolutely nothing. He merely said we had an old softener and he couldn't properly evaluate it. That was it. And then I paid him about $100. And I was ready to stand pat with doing nothing until I saw the newspaper article with such sharp and threatening language. This is no way for the City of Morris to deal with its constituents.
I blogged on this topic Saturday on on my companion "Morris of Course" site. This morning I was pleased to get some feedback from a treasured friend, a Central Minnesota newspaper publisher. He writes:
So greatly enjoyed your work - "work" that should have been what the newspaper folks write in your town - on the water treatment issues in Morris. I am sitting here just dumbfounded - here in tiny Brooten we are in a house with no water softener. Our water heater is 38 years old and still working like a charm (as best as a 1981 model could work). We did replace a coil 4 years ago and it is cranking out hot water like no one's business. Our portable dish washer did bite it about a year ago, and we can be sure it is because we have no water softener. So we're back to manually washing dishes (something my 8 year old daughter does with ease). I cannot imagine the bull s--t that was in that "news" article. I have no idea why the water treatment in Brooten would be superior to what you have in Morris. It would behoove a newspaper crew in your town to do some research on that issue!
I responded to my friend by reporting on what it's like these days with my online journalism. Here's a portion from my perspective:
One of my best local "tipsters" on community news has
decided he should put some distance with me. The background: I wrote
skeptical views of UMM's "40-year anniversary" of the "UMM concert
choir" and my concern was that my father directed the choir program
prior to that. My view is that my father ran the program within a nice
limited budget but then certain people wanted it to have more of a
flourish, traveling etc., and my father was near retirement anyway. So
he took early retirement in 1978 and had a long and very happy
retirement. Everyone should be so fortunate as my parents, as to have
such long and comfortable retirements. The choir director who succeeded
my father of course wants to blow his own horn now. No conflict with
him, actually he sang with the choir in the funerals for both my
parents.
Interesting:
I gave $25,000 as a memorial for both my parents to benefit UMM music,
and now some of the people close to that program are ostracizing
me. I was never a good fit with UMM, and that just continues now.
My
father way back in 1960 was instrumental in even getting UMM going. He
took the men's chorus to the 1962 Seattle World's Fair where it opened
the Minnesota Day program, so he had quite a career. You should see his
scrapbook from the 1950s.
I enjoyed working in "PDQ Bach" with my recent writing! All his stuff is of course on YouTube now.
Again, thanks. I regret that I have developed a skeptical, cynical view of our City of Morris now.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com
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