It doesn't sound like they were expecting someone else to do it: they did it themselves but the maintainers were not open to the idea.
What you said sounds exactly like they want the “maintainers” to do something.
But I understand how it can sound like that if you’re part of the demographic I’m talking about.
And when they don't accept your contributions and lock your thread when you explain why you neeed it, what then?
"Oh this incredibly hard work that someone else did for free isn't exactly what I wanted and they refuse to change it the way I want for free"
If Elm is so great, and if it's 99% there, and you only need "this one little custom operator" added, or this "special piece of extension code" and it's really that 1% and you can't be bothered to contribute that 1%; to do it yourself, or pay someone to do it, well, then you deserve to use whatever piece of shit you end up with.