What's Really Going On In Celina?

Celina, Texas: As one of the fastest-growing cities in the country and one of the BEST cities in the country, Celina has made its way into the limelight. People are moving to the city in unprecedented numbers, and a very high percentage of the population of Celina is happy. However, there is a lot of apathy regarding local politics, which is typical.

It's not that people don't care; it's just that they BELIEVE that their elected officials and city staff are doing their jobs, and IF anything comes up, they (residents of the city) will do something about it at that time. But, only a little makes it into the average Celina, Texas resident's field of vision. The city council meetings are boring, and the magazines and paper spend their paper real estate covering positive things and selling ads (as they should), so there is no medium to get these details out to everyday Celina, Texas residents.

Under this thick veil of apathy and the lack of effective ways to share information, quite a few things have gone unchecked, and decisions have been made that are unprecedented and which deserve public scrutiny. Lots of it. For example, did you know that every single seat held by volunteers on citizen boards (except for the Board of Adjustments) was terminated and told that they would have to "reapply" for their positions? This was done after recent elections changed the make-up of the city council.   A move like this would likely NOT have been supported by the majority of the previous city council; however, this sort of decision and followthrough became possible with the change in council members. Sadly, not only did it become possible, it happened. 

Like most things, there are two sides to the story then there's the backstory. Of course, any tidbit of information you get through traditional means will be one of the "sides." But we all know the truth is in the middle, told boldly by the proverbial "backstory."  As host of the Celina Radio Podcast, it has been my wish to stay 100 percent positive and never get into any negativity on the show. And, for 27 episodes, I have done that. But things have changed now. With decisions such as flipping the boards and the well known effort to target city officials for removal or termination, I will no longer sit silently by allowing the reckless decisions to go unchecked. This is not leadership. Instead, this is the a real life version of schoolyard kids doing what they do best -and that ISN'T watching out for Celina and its residents.

The depth of this recent, dark series of efforts has gone further than they should have, which begs the question, what's next? Where are the limits to how far this recently emplaced "majority" on the Celina City Council will go? The answer is "as far as they want," unless a checks and balances apparatus is in place to make these bad decisions known so they can be reckoned with in the voting booth. Welcome to one of the checks and balances. It's called CelinaRadio.com and if you can't tell, there's a change coming and it's long overdue. Starting now, Celina Radio will explore the "back story" and shine light in dark places. Is this where I wanted this show to go? Never. But more importantly is this where I ever wanted this city to go? Never times a million.

Let's be clear about something. To defend bad leadership, some will say that I am in this or that camp or on this or that person's side. Let me set the record straight right now. I am on the side of the Celina resident and the city's future. Period.  I am in neither "camp" nor on either "side." Being beholden to none allows me the freedom to say what others are afraid to say. And, it just so happens that I'm fearless enough to do it and the reach of Celina Radio is far enough to make a difference. Currently, the new majority on the Celina City Council has to own these poorly made decisions, but in the event that actions by others who are charged with serving this city and it's citizens should ever make bad decisions, Celina Radio will equally be standing at the ready to deal with those as well. 

So what does this look like for Celina Radio? It means that we are still;l going to be bringing you the positive, uplifting shows that we always have, featuring the BEST of Celina. But, we are also adding episodes that deal with "backstory" issues.  It means that in these new episodes, we are going to discuss things. We will work to gain the level of transparency that Celina residents deserve. How often? As often as needed. What's the end game? Well, that will be determined by those who choose to play games with the city that you and I love so dearly. Perfection isn't possible, but bad leadership and poor decisions are unacceptable. That being said, I hope that the "backstory" will shrink and everyone can get on the same page of leading Celina, Texas, into a fantastic future full of possibility. If not, you'll hear about it here, -loud and often. Count on that.