SQUIDFRY 06.11.20: Point Less

POINT LESS… Squid supports the idea of a civil grand jury as an independent citizen watchdog to serve as an extra set of eyes over government goings on. In the case of the Monterey County Civil Grand Jury, Squid wonders if it’s not so much eyes as gums. Historically, most reports go nowhere and little changes as a result of all the jurors’ investigative efforts. (The grand jury issues reports, agencies write reports in response, and that’s it – no teeth.)

Case in point, the 2019-20 jury’s report released June 3, called “Monterey Peninsula Airport District, The Airport Master Plan – a Well-Conceived Flight Plan, but Indications of Financial Turbulence Ahead.” Squid buckled Squid’s seatbelt for a bumpy ride.

The report vaguely complains that the district’s taxpayers might get saddled with part of the cost of a new terminal at Monterey Regional Airport to replace the current aging one. (Federal Aviation Administration grants will cover the rest of the cost.) One problem. The taxpayers won’t pay for a new terminal unless they use it. Most airports are financed through revenue bonds, which are paid back through future revenue, like user’s fees attached to plane tickets or car rentals and lease agreements with restaurants and private jet companies. The district never asked the taxpayers for money in the past, and never intends to.

District residents have other questions worth digging into, like does the airport follow noise rules or, why’d they push a new road no one wants? Like a lone piece of luggage on a carousel after everyone’s left the terminal, this report spins around going nowhere.

ZOOM ROOM… Squid’s been embracing shelter-in-place as an opportunity to never comb Squid’s hair and watch lots of TV. But the quality of Squid’s public television habit has suffered somewhat. Squid has long been well acquainted with the joys of watching government meetings, but normally they’re rather dignified – officials sitting alongside each other at a dais, a little spruced up for the occasion.

In Zoom meetings, some officials look like they’re calling in from a dungeon. Or like they desperately need some art on the walls – or just a lamp. (Watching a Seaside City Council meeting is like Phantom of the Opera; everyone’s face is half in shadow.) Carmel Mayor Dave Potter provides a view mostly of the ceiling, Marina City Councilmember Adam Urrutia cuts off his face at the nose. The only one who’s really nailed it, in Squid’s opinion, is Pacific Grove Mayor Bill Peake – decent lighting, a simple bookshelf in the background, space behind him so it doesn’t look like he’s in a cell.

Squid fully accepts that Squid’s lair would not get 10 out of 10 on the popular Twitter account, @ratemyskyperoom, but Squid at least does have a lamp. Compared to Monterey County’s electeds, that seems pretty classy.