A Flawed Message By a Flawed Messenger

publication date: Jan 21, 2008

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author/source: Phil Barnet

Phil Barnet

I read the editorial of Councilman Kent Igleheart with some dismay as I was at the very same meeting and saw things quite differently from what he describes. I, as a citizen of Roswell, attend many Council meetings and had not been called by Mayor Jere Wood or any one else to speak out against the ludicrous legislation Mr. Igleheart had proposed. But, what we should take away from Mr. Igleheart’s editorial (and spin) in [a recent] issue of the Beacon is that he would again like to propose a moratorium on new development in Roswell … and he will again base it on the use of water in a time of drought.

Now let’s use some practical application of common sense and analyze what it is Mr. Igleheart wants to accomplish. First, Roswell is over 90 percent developed. So his legislation really is non-applicable to the current needs of the city nor offers any real reduction of water use now or in the future. He exempts development already in the pipeline and all redevelopment. Rather than taking a position that would positively impact the city, Mr. Igleheart takes another extreme position for no new development. I call this a grandstand play. This was not an effort to bring this very serious matter to the forefront. It was an attempt to once again stop development in Roswell and build his name as we approach the 2009 elections.

If reducing water consumption in Roswell was his concern, why not introduce changes to Roswell’s building codes mandating low flow toilets, low pressure shower heads and tankless hot water heaters for all future development and redevelopment including remodeling? This would result in serious reduction in water use by the entire community and set a precedent which other communities should follow. There are other steps which I am confident would serve the city. But this is an example of how to address a problem which is region-wide without negatively impacting the future of Roswell.

I am going to take this a step farther. Mr. Igleheart’s purpose was to again take pot shots at the mayor and now his wife. I can understand if two people don’t like each other. Take it outside and settle it among yourselves. But this was a frontal attack on the mayor. Mayor Wood did not submit stupid legislation — Mr. Igleheart did. What is interesting is that Mr. Igleheart did not get one person in the audience to support his legislation. But, more importantly, he also failed to garner any support from his counterparts on the Council. Yet, he wants to take up valuable space in the Beacon to spin it in a manner that makes Mayor Wood the bad guy who prevented his legislation from moving forward. Mr. Igleheart, it is time to wake up and recognize that we are smarter than you give us credit for. Mayor Wood did not sabotage your ordinance — your lack of thought did!

I find it very difficult to continue to take Mr. Igleheart seriously. While very eloquent in his writing, he continues to trip over himself in his opposition to everything. While stating he is opposed to more commercial development in Roswell, he traded the destruction of 60 acres of undeveloped land and its trees for a mixed use development. All because it removed two unsightly billboards — and we all know that is the issue which got him elected. He is the same person who voted against a development along Ga 400 because the floor area to acreage ratio of 1.29 was too dense, then supported a ratio of 1.2 in the Historic District. He is the same person who has stated that Roswell has not raised taxes while he has been in office. I look at my tax bill each year and can see that in the past 10 years I pay more city taxes than before he was elected. Since Mr. Igleheart is not a property owner in Roswell and does not pay property taxes he might be unaware of such increases. Maybe it is time that we start looking at this seat with a more critical eye as Mr. Igleheart has lost touch with the needs of Roswell’s future and has proven to be somewhat hypocritical in his actions.

This whole situation furthers the call on Roswell and her citizens to ask the mayor and Council to broadcast City Council meetings live on RCTV. We have the equipment in place (the cameras are there), we fund RCTV (about $70K per year) and it would allow each of us to follow our government more closely. While I respect the news media of our area, there’s no way they can deliver the information regarding a lengthy City Council meeting in its entirety within their pages. This would also preclude the accusations and spin that Mr. Igleheart made in his editorial as the record would be available live to all of Roswell, which would find that this time he is unequivocally inaccurate.

I call upon the citizens of Roswell to contact our elected officials to let them know that we will not tolerate extremism when common sense will work in our best interest. I also ask that those of you interested in live broadcasts of City Council meetings contact them as well. Other cities and counties do the same for a much greater cost than Roswell would. For our elected officials not to support this is to say they either have something to hide or they want to be able to continue to spin events. Let’s not give either scenario the opportunity to exist.

Phil Barnet is an advertising executive in Roswell who in November ran unsuccessfully for Roswell City Council.