The fifth floor of City Hall is a pretty quiet place these days, which isn’t overly unusual given that June is normally a quiet month anyway for political doings.
But this time, it’s more that that.
Since Mayor Rick Filippi lost his re-election bid, you could argue that some of the fire has gone from the staff’s collective belly, some of the wind has left the sails.
But it’s more than that, too.
There are still taxes to be collected, roads to be paved and garbage bags to be picked up, so it’s not as if the machinery of governing the city has ground to a halt.
No, it seems that the prolonged quiet has more to do with losing juice, and how fickle those who pursue power’s bright flame can be.
You could like the Mayor or hate him, but there was little doubt on either side that his was the stick that stirred the pot.
His administration sued neighboring Millcreek over sewers and sued Penelec over old conduit lines. His staff battled Council and the Controller over the right to subpoena city workers and the right to fund Cabinet level jobs.
For better or worse, the Mayor’s office was a busy place and the sound of a phone ringing a common occurrence.
That’s no longer true.
Like fans at a golf tournament running to line up near an errant shot, those who seek favor and influence from the powerful are scrambling to position themselves close to the “next thing.�
Although the Mayor and his staff continue to hold office, they no longer are seen as either movers or shakers creating Erie’s political, economic and cultural skirmishes. They are viewed more as caretakers rather than as wielders of the clout sought by those making the appointments and calls.
That, more than the time of year or any loss of inertia is creating the silence.
There is a lesson here, of course, for those who seek celebrity, fame or power and the luminescence that those things bring.
Like moths to a flame, the light also brings crowds hoping to bask in the glow, but when the torch is passed, what can be left behind is often dark, and awfully quiet.