by William Skink

If you missed last night’s City Council meeting where the 4th street Condo project got the green light, the poem below captures most of the action. More to come, stay tuned…

VON ROCKET AND CONDO JONES SAVE THE WORLD

limp leveraged Council
shrugs and laments
he’ll build out those condos
with or without our consent

a right-of-way give away
is all we can do
and the sardine can master plan
ties our hands to

opposition to the condos
will take turns at the mic
the public is angry
they’ll burn through the night

but the Mayor is crafty
gets Norwegian laughs
and, blood in the water,
gets Norwegian claps

no laughing for Julie
she abstains with a speech
about WGM conflict
above board, she decrees!

Park and Rec’s next
blah, blah fees increase
the audience squirms
a few fall asleep

more power point slides
blue prints and red squares
for conditional use
about which no one cares

the big issue comes up
the gentrified vote
our prophets of density
lecture the scope

condos because climate change
and affordable homes
and urban core planning
so guess how they’ll vote?

Hess and West, yes
Jones shakes her bones
Von Rocket smiles
Mayor Engen groans

at the end of the night
with Council’s job done
the public retired
because development won