Tuesday
Jan272009
« Balfour considers change in Snellville city council »
Tuesday, January 27, 2009 at 8:41PM
State Sen. Don Balfour (R-Snellville) is contemplating a change to the structure of the Snellville City Council. Because the council has an even number of votes, deadlocked votes are common. Such a move makes sense so that issues can come to a resolution one way or the other. Snellville Mayor Jerry Oberholtzer, however, makes a valid counterpoint: this type of change should be intiated by the council itself. If the city and residents are not asking for the problem to be fixed, then is this really something on which Sen. Balfour should make the first move? This of course assumes that there is even a problem. Mayor Pro Tem Warren Auld may have put it best:
Often, government wants to insert itself where it does not belong and a divided government body gridlocked can be an effective antidote to this urge. (With the Democrats in solid control in Washington, how much I long for a good case of gridlock for the next four or, perish the thought, eight years!)
I think Sen. Balfour's idea to hold a town hall to discuss the matter is the best balance of the various viewpoints. If there is a town hall, I hope that organizers will avoid seeding justifications for a change like the County Commission did with socialized garbage and simply let residents speak express their own views. From this, the state legislature will have more standing to address Snellville's city council logjams.
Oh, and if the legislature eventually decides to act and decides to reduce the size of the council by one, let me be the first to nominate Councilwoman Kelly Kautz to be the member that is shown the door. After her performance throghout the crematory controversy, she has earned that honor!
Auld said beyond the three options pitched by Balfour, there’s a fourth: leaving it the way it is. “In some cases, having gridlock means limiting government action, which sometimes can be a good thing for our citizens.”
Often, government wants to insert itself where it does not belong and a divided government body gridlocked can be an effective antidote to this urge. (With the Democrats in solid control in Washington, how much I long for a good case of gridlock for the next four or, perish the thought, eight years!)
I think Sen. Balfour's idea to hold a town hall to discuss the matter is the best balance of the various viewpoints. If there is a town hall, I hope that organizers will avoid seeding justifications for a change like the County Commission did with socialized garbage and simply let residents speak express their own views. From this, the state legislature will have more standing to address Snellville's city council logjams.
Oh, and if the legislature eventually decides to act and decides to reduce the size of the council by one, let me be the first to nominate Councilwoman Kelly Kautz to be the member that is shown the door. After her performance throghout the crematory controversy, she has earned that honor!
Categories: City of Snellville, State Politics, State Senate Tags: City of Snellville, Democrats, Don Balfour, Georgia General Assembly, Gwinnett County Commission, Jerry Oberholtzer, Kelly Kautz, Snellville City Council, Warren Auld, crematory, garbage, government, gridlock, politics, state senator, town hall meeting
City of Snellville, State Politics, State Senate Tags: City of Snellville, Democrats, Don Balfour, Georgia General Assembly, Gwinnett County Commission, Jerry Oberholtzer, Kelly Kautz, Snellville City Council, Warren Auld, crematory, garbage, government, gridlock, politics, state senator, town hall meeting
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