Opinion

One last chance

Mismanagement, withdrawal of funding, resignation of directors, controversy over the organization of board members and unreliable communication of reports. These are all reasons for the city of Madison to finally call it quits on the Allied-Dunn’s Marsh Neighborhood Community Center on Madison’s southwest side.

From a business standpoint, cutting off the center’s funding is fiscally responsible of the city, as well as it is for the United Way of Dane County. There is a point where enough is enough. Withdrawing funds is exactly what should be done if any business, including a community center, proves itself to be defective in management and money-handling skills.

However, it is those two words, community center, which finds a soft spot in the hearts of many. That spot grows larger when the city decides to close the center’s doors in the middle of a neighborhood that unquestionably needs more of an effort from all of those involved in order to keep its doors open.

For quite some time, Madison’s Community Services and Community Development Block Grant offices have been struggling with Allied’s Community Center board members, and particularly with it’s director, Mary Kirkendoll. This struggle has included disorganization, and often-late reports about where the center was spending its funds and the controversial manner in which the center appointed its board members. Kirkendoll was even fired for a short period of time because of her unacceptable actions, but was later reinstated by the board. For her part, Kirkendoll has accused the city of expecting unattainable achievements, while limiting her resources. She also defends her position as a community leader and argues she has organized many valuable community services.

As a result of these problems, the city and the community center’s board members should consider taking the resignation of the center’s director, Mary Kirkendoll, as a window of opportunity to see that the center is run in a more acceptable manner. Give a new director one final chance to prove how valuable this center can be when ran efficiently and effectively. This process to reform a center that has gone bad should be done by using a key ingredient that has of late been severely lacking–teamwork.

Before the screams are heard from the city’s Community Services office and the Community Development Block Grant office that have pulled $23,944 and $107,000, respectively, the decision to remove the money was not without plenty of warning. A community center that actually spends less money than it is annually awarded without providing accurate reports explaining its spending habits deserves a little more than an eyebrow raise. Nevertheless, the withdrawal of that money has been done due to the flawed management of the board.

Who are the people that are really punished by closing this community center? Its closing means the board members lose a title, maybe a job – but the people of this community lose a safe, welcoming place.

Luckily for the people of the community, the Madison Metropolitan School District and the YWCA have bought the city and the board a couple of months to at least start to get something in order for the next school year. With the position of director now open, the opportunity for the city and the community to work together to reshape the center into something everyone can be proud of has presented itself.  City funding alone is not enough. The board needs to step up and make sure that the director is doing his or her job.

Hopefully, this time won’t be spent playing another exhaustive game of one-side against the other, which has thus far only resulted in a futile stalemate. Instead, this time should be used to set attainable goals, put into place a series of checks to ensure fiscal responsibility and to provide services to a community that desperately needs the attention. These objectives should be at the forefront of priorities for the new community center director. The window of opportunity to work together is now—it would be a shame to let it pass.

Mandy Meyer (almeyer@wisc.edu) is a senior majoring in Spanish.