Members of the Herald’s editorial board were not among the 100 invited to Mayor Dean Brookie’s ball at his house Friday evening, but that doesn’t mean we find fault with it.
On the contrary, Brookie, who used no public funds for the event, deserves to be the center of attention for a few hours. Mayors for Durango have some leadership responsibilities, but much of their time is spent on ceremonial assignments. Events’ welcomes, holiday tributes, recognitions for special citizens, that sort of thing. Mayors learn to give a pretty good impromptu speech. For that, mayors receive a few more dollars a month than do their fellow councilors.
But Brookie’s term, to end this month, happened to fall during the August 2015 toxic mine water spill that turned the Animas River red-orange. That meant numerous special meetings in Durango, a trip to Washington and several trips to Denver to describe the spill’s impacts on the city and the Animas River Valley and speculation about what the future might hold. There were multiple television and radio interviews, some of them for national audiences. By all reports, Brookie did a superb job of representing Durango in the many diverse settings.
So, we hope Dean Brookie enjoyed himself at his party. In fact it would have been alright with us if public funds had purchased the cake. Leading a city as contentious as Durango is not an easy task, and with the mine spill, Brookie’s term was especially challenging and time consuming.
Thanks to Dean Brookie for leading and representing so well.
