I liked the editorial in the El Paso Times yesterday.
You can read it here: http://www.elpasotimes.com/opinion/ci_21972302/city-manager (It may take a minute to show in your browser but it does show in mine after about 50 seconds).
Maybe the Times will start reporting the happenings at City Hall with a bit more independent analysis.
City staff works for the City Manager and what they do is a direct result of the tone set by the boss.
The result is that what we see during City Council is often just a stage show.
They frequently use a two step system where a presentation is first made before Council making certain representations. In the second step they proceed to do something different from what they promised (an example will follow in a later post).
Sometimes they claim that they do not have time to do something the right way because time will not allow it.
Or they will claim that something needs to be bought “sole source” without bidding when the facts do not support avoiding bidding.
As the editorial points out some members of Council correspond privately with staff during open meetings. An exchange of electronic mail during an open meeting is considered a form of deliberation and must be open to the public.
Watch a City Council meeting. See how they react when a member of the public addresses them. Council needs to start listening to the public.
Staff and Council need to start following the rules.
We deserve this.
elpasospeak 
Members of the City Council, city staff, and anyone participating in the meeting or representing the city should be required to check their iPads, cell phones (and their egos) at the door. Regardless whether a participant needs access to their laptop or iPad, there should be a policy that e-mails and text messages cannot be opened or sent during the meeting. I would love to see all the e-mails received or sent by council members or city staff during the meetings over the past year. I’m betting some communications were between council members and people with business interests affected by council decisions.
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This was addressed during the Wardy administration, I think. There was a time when the council members were prohibited from accessing email or using their phones during council meetings. If they had some urgent communication matter they would take it in the back room. I believe the Cook administration reversed this, but I could be wrong……someone check me out on this.
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