Not only did the Hillsboro City Council make a good decision when it voted last week against a recommendation from the city's own Planning and Zoning Commission to allow Emprise Bank to proceed with its proposed new drive-through lane along Main Street, but it made the decision in a good way. We believe Emprise officials when they say they didn't foresee that their project might infringe on the well-being of a neighboring business, but ultimately it did. And now it won't.
The encouraging thing about the whole episode is that it appears all the parties involved left on good terms. That's due in part to the good nature of those parties, no doubt, but also to a good decision-making process. The council did not rubber-stamp the recommendation of the commission. It took time to consider the various positions, invited public input and even deferred making a decision until it was satisfied it had all of the appropriate information it needed to make the best decision possible.
In the end, you walked away believing our local elected representatives were truly committed to the best interest of all parties-and the city in general. That's good government. And, we might add, it was an example of good citizenship, too, on the part of Emprise Bank and the affected parties. -DR
