Recommendations for Signal Mountain Town Council

As most of my friends know, I am supporting Bill Wallace for Town Council again this year. I have known Bill since serving with him on the MACC Board while I was on the council. Bill is thoughtful and independent and has been a voice of reason on the Council. He is a man of conservative inclinations and, while we may disagree on national politics, his approach to our town has been exactly what I want in a representative, fiscally responsible and open. As Richard Casavant once told me "potholes don't have parties"! His background is in communications and that shows in his constituent responsiveness. He opposed last year's unnecessary tax increase. He also opposed significantly increasing the salary of the town manager at the same time that the council was dipping into the general fund to balance the budget. He felt that an increase like that should also be associated with more commitment to the town than a 60-day notice of resignation.
He believes in smart, responsible growth but not in obstructionism that will only drive up our taxes and turn Signal Mountain into an elite community where only the wealthy can afford to live.

Bill has been attacked vociferously by friends of the current council majority for taking these positions. Several of the early letters attacking Bill attracted my attention. They included detailed attacks on some obscure votes. However, I didn't recognize the name of the writer of this letter or of some follow-up letters. My curiosity was aroused and I started trying to find out who these folks were. Extensive searching of public records and internet presence was without result. I contacted the newspaper who researched the letter. They informed me that they were "unable to confirm the address of the author" of the first letter and pulled the letter from running in the community news. At this point, I am convinced that these letters were written under a false name by a supporter of the Council majority candidates (Lusk and Allen) who had intimate knowledge of the details of some of these obscure votes, but didn't want his (or her...) name known. I would strongly urge the candidates to either confirm that the writers of these letters are real people who do live in Signal Mountain or disavow these letters and reveal if they know anything about their origins. These kinds of dirty tricks have no place in Signal Mountain politics.

Beyond Bill, my choices will be a bit surprising. Obviously, I have major differences with the current Council majority. Their approach to local government is secretive and many of their public comments have been filled with errors (whether intentional or not I can't say, but ignorance is as bad as deceit).  Their approach to citizens volunteering to work with the town through town boards and through private fundraising has been extremely exclusive of and vindictive towards anyone who disagrees with them. This is clearly indicated by the vicious attacks leading to the destruction of the MACC/SMArt Foundation and the recent removal of Dr. Jeff Duncan from the Parks Board for disagreeing with Annette Allen on the issue of handing control of our public parks over to outside groups which, while honorable groups doing great work, are not controlled by the town of Signal Mountain. Frankly, this is the point. Ms. Allen and the council majority do not trust the citizens of Signal Mountain to protect our public lands and want to remove any control from the Town's responsibility. I find this attitude to be outrageous.

Therefore, I've decided to offer my support to Joe Dumas. Joe and I have had many disagreements over the years. Frankly, I suspect we will have more in the future. However, Joe is smart. Joe cares about this town. Most of all, Joe is honest and open. Agree or disagree, you will know where Joe stands. He will not hide or tell you one thing while doing another. I hope that he will recognize that he represents the citizens which means that sometimes you have to vote for what the people want, even if it may not be what you would want yourself. However, I think it is time to give Joe a chance to add his voice to our community. He and I have had some very serious (diplomats would call them "frank"!) discussions. I have learned that he can change his mind on things. That is an important trait. He is trained in the sciences like me which gives me hope that he will look at the facts and make his decisions based on those facts rather than picking out (or making up) facts to fit his pre-conceived ideas as our current council majority is prone to do. You can be sure that he will keep a close eye on the finances of our town and be sure they are spent wisely and efficiently.

So, please vote for Bill Wallace. I also urge you to vote for Joe Dumas. As for a third vote, I know Frank Preston to be a fine man. Mutual friends have reassured me that he will be independent. I do have concerns about the fact that Lusk and Allen supporters seems to almost uniformly support him which makes me think that they see him as a "rubber stamp". I hope they are wrong. I do hope that Frank gets elected and adds another independent voice to Signal Mountain politics. I have never liked "tickets" in local politics. I didn't like "Farmer/White" or the "Recall" ticket or the "Keep Your Council" ticket and I don't like this "Allen/Lusk/Preston" ticket. This was no reflection on the individual candidates, but obviously one assumes that those on a "ticket" feel a commitment to "stick together". That has caused immense grief in Washington, DC and I don't want it here. Our Town Council members should be independent voices making their own separate decisions. They should be able to agree on one issue and disagree on the next and move on. It is obvious that is not currently the case and electing the "status quo" will only continue this lockstep approach to our local government. Thanks for listening!

Paul M. Hendricks, MD