Alta Vista Neighborhood Association

I read with interest the recent article ''Areas seeking conservation status''
''Alta Vista wants new designation'' by Chuck McCollough (Mar. 28th, San Antonio Express News, North Central
Edition).

The first line, ''Fred Chavez and thousands of of his neighbors are ready for
the race to become the city's first neighborhood conservation district.''

Given that the President of the Alta Vista Neighborhood Association has
publically acknowledged the exclusive nature of AVNA on this very forum,
and that neighborhood residents are prevented from voting on decisions that
effect the entire neighborhood without first paying dues, I am curious as
to exactly how the opinions of ''thousands'' of Alta Vista neighbors were ascertained,
particularly when one considers that average participation in a neighborhood
association meeting averages around 20.

How is it that 20 dues-paying members of an exclusive organization can presume to speak on behalf of ''thousands'' of neighborhood residents on this or any other issue?

By Long-Time Alta Vista Resident

Conservation OK for me

The process for a Conservation District Overlay will be an open process with public hearing or meetings for all Alta Vista residents (members or not). Hope to see everyone involved.

Hector Side-Steps

First off, let me express my deep respect for Hector. For those that do not know he has done much for the Alta Vista Neighborhood and we are all very much indebted to him for is efforts. Further, let me also state that I will be glad to support him when we run him for City Council District 1, when & while we are also getting Bobby Perez elected to Mayor. Alright, enough brown-nosing.

Hector avoids the issue of the first post. He supports the ''end'' while studiously ignoring the ''means'' by which that end is accomplished. Very diplomatic, very political and skills like that should serve him well, but those skills will be lost to Alta Vista if/when he ''ascends''.

The failure of the Alta Vista Neighborhood to address the inherent flaws in it's representative process virtually guarantee that the will of the Alta Vista Neighborhood as expressed by the Neighborhood Association will never be legitimate.

The political maxim is ''If you control the process, you control the outcome.'' The ''constituents'' of Alta Vista do not control the process of representation for the simple reason that participation in that process is limited only to dues-paying members. This is exactly what was wrong back in the ''bad old days'' of the poll-tax. It was bad then, and it is bad now.

And in the absence of a legitimate representative process, the ''vacuum of power'' that is created is handed over to 3 basic groups.

They are-
1) The dues paying members of the Neighborhood Association, which excludes people based on income.
2) The City staff, which is not accountable to any elected official save the Mayor and his power is limited.
3) The City Councilman, whose power is also limited.

The bottom line is that Fred is wrong, throwing around words like ''inclusive''. There can be no ''inclusivity'' in the process when there is no process at all. And there is no process and anyone that says otherwise is uninformed, misrepresenting the truth or both.

The ''process'' for conservation is as devoid of legitimacy as was the Planning ''process''. Some have called this dynamic ''corrupt''. I do not like to use this word, but it does get attention.

Honestly it is not so much a ''corruption'' of process as it is an absence of legitimate process. And what is absent is the very thing that millions of patriotic americans have sacrificed their very lives for, the Right to be included in the process of a Representative Democracy.

So to everyone, please stop saying things about ''Neighborhoods'' when it comes to both Planning and Conservation. It's a big-fat lie. It has little or nothing to do with the Neighborhoods, and it is all about the City.