Ad Check: Wild Acres and Seminary Property

There is a paragraph in the ad that discusses the seminary property and Wild Acres park.

Here are some half-truths contained in the paragraph:

"The property at 2500 Ashby was bought by the former mayor without a vote of the people."
The mayor cannot purchase property. It can only be done with consent of the city council. This makes this a blatant lie.
Of course it was done without a vote of the people. This is why we elect representation—to make these decisions on our behalf. Perhaps the writer would prefer we change the city charter to a "town hall meeting" and make all decision by vote at these meetings.

"These buildings are in such disarray it would take millions of dollars to bring them up to code."
Okay then. It is only in disarray because of neglect. We, as a city, should make a cognizant decision that we will no longer allow such neglect. City government should work with citizen action groups such as "Friends of Wild Acres" to initiate restoration projects. Some of the work can be done by citizen volunteers. Some of the work can be paid for by grants that are probably out there for such projects.
It can be done! The fact that a developer who specializes in historic restoration is interested in the property proves that statement.