Wed
Apr 8 2009
07:48 am
An Open Letter to Kingston City Council
By: BrantWW

All,
Last night while we were discussing Kingston’s representatives to the Roane County Long Term Recovery Committee, specifically the appointment of Mr. Tony Brown to replace Mr. Matt Caldwell, an important issue failed to register with me.

If Mr. Brown takes a new position with the Roane County government (as County Commission Chairman - Kingston Mayor Beets told us he would), two of our Long Term Recovery Committee representatives, County Commission Chairman Beets and Roane County employee Brown, will have an apparent conflict of interest and perhaps divided loyalties between their service and fidelity to Roane County as a whole and to the city of Kingston.

As Council does not yet know how the Roane County Long Term Recovery Committee will weigh votes or will allocate funds received from the TVA, I have grave concerns that two of our representatives will either have taken an oath of office to serve Roane County as an elected official or will owe alliance to Roane County by virtue of employment.

I am not questioning Roane County Commission Chairman Beets or Mr. Brown’s integrity To the contrary, that they strive so mightily to fulfill their duties creates cause for concern. How can they (or anyone) properly represent and serve the city of Kingston by placing Kingston first without neglecting their responsibility, elected or fiduciary, to serve Roane County?

Certainly, there are times when this might be less a problem, but dealing with the TVA Ash Disaster is new ground and the stakes are high. As Kingston’s governing body, can we afford to take the chance, no matter how slight, that we are placing County Commission Chairman Beets and Roane County employee Brown in a position where difficult conflicts of interest may arise?

Can Council afford the possibility that Roane County Commission Chairman Beets or Mr. Brown might fail to recognize or acknowledge a conflict of interest and thus might unconsciously allow their divided loyalties to affect debate and/or the eventual outcome of the committee’s efforts?

Can the Kingston City Council afford to have representatives to the committee who may have good cause and reason to look favorable to the County when our citizens might wish them to have only Kingston’s best interest at heart?

The stakes are too high to accept even the appearance of a conflict of interest between the county and the city affecting the outcome of the negotiation for and then dispersion of funds that the TVA might allocate to Roane County.

I therefore recommend that we revisit our decision to appoint Mr. Brown to the County Long Term Recovery Committee and open this question up to further debate.
Thank you.

Sincerely,
Brant W. Williams
Councilman - City of Kingston
Kingston, TN 37763
Office: 865-934-0743
Cell: 865-382-8640
RETURN mailto: Brant@BrantWWilliams.com

DISCLAIMER: The opinions expressed, views discussed, thoughts aired and/or ideas contained in this email communication are solely those of City of Kingston City Council Member Brant W. Williams and are in no way reflective of or representative of the opinions, views, thoughts, and/or ideas of any other City of Kingston City Council Member, the majority of the City of Kingston City Council, any other City of Kingston City Official, or any employee of the City of Kingston.

Topics:

Replacement

Submitted by loveofcountry on April 8, 2009 - 9:09am.

Kingston has maybe the most at stake in this.
Caldwell must have had a great reason to resign.
Those reasons should be analyzed
so his replacement will understand those challenges.
An appointment should be made of a person that clearly understands
the needs of Kingston in this disaster.
Someone that clearly is representing the interest of the City.
Someone that is a good negotiator, planner, visionary and understands the greater scope and impact.
We don't need a group of likeminded or similar people,
as diversity strengthens negotiations, planning, and visioning.

I talked with Matt about his

Submitted by WhitesCreek on April 8, 2009 - 9:12am.

I talked with Matt about his reasons for leaving the committee. They were mostly because he could forsee a conflict between the committee and his personal and business situation going forward. I didn't think it was a big deal but he's more comfortable this way.

I think Tony Brown is a great addition to the committee.

Through the election office,

Submitted by loveofcountry on April 8, 2009 - 9:26am.

Through the election office, Tony has proven experience in being a planner and visionary as he is well organized and lead the way for others to follow.

Regarding Matt, other people on the committee have pending and ongoing personal situations with TVA, but his decision is admirable and understandable, but a loss for the community.

P.S. Willis' touch spoils all fruit whether good or bad.

I agree

Submitted by BrantWW on April 8, 2009 - 10:39am.

First, Mr. Brown would be a good addition to the committee.

Second, I would like to make it clear that I have no other person in mind to serve on the county's LTRC and should Mr. Brown decline to serve I shall make no recommendation as to his replacement. I say this to put all at ease that my stand is not a politically motivated ploy.

I simply want Kingston’s representation on the committee untainted by the potential for conflicts of interest.

That said, I must ask, is there no other resident of Kingston who does not work for the County who might serve?

Kingston already has one rep too many with divided loyalties - County- Commissioner, Chairman-Mayor Beets.

We need no other.

Is there no Kingston citizen who has no divided loyalty between county and city who might serve equally as well as Mr. Brown?

The issue of conflict of interests is not about the ability of the person suffering the conflict. It is about the conflict that may influence even the best-intentioned individual. It is human nature that a man or woman with close ties to the county might find it harder to advocate solely for the interests of the city or might advocate less vigorously than might one with fewer or less strong ties to the county government.

Thus, if not employed by the county Mr. Brown is my first choice. And so long as he does not accept a new position with the county I support Mr. Brown without reservation.

However, County-Commissioner, Chairman-Mayor Beets said Mr. Brown will be offered a new position with the county. If Mr. Brown continues to serve the county as a contractor or employee he should not serve as Kingston's appointee to the County committee.

Furthermore, I would hope as man of integrity, Mr. Brown recognizes the great potential for conflict of interest and decline to serve so long as he remains in the county's employment.

Conflict of Interest

Submitted by loveofcountry on April 8, 2009 - 11:05am.

Conflicted as it seems.
We are replacing a member that foresaw his own conflict of interest thus duly resigning with one that you foresee as having a future conflict of interest.
There exist many people with great skills outside of the reach of Willis the master of conflicts of interest.
To break the web of being conflicted, we must stop being afflicted.

There are a few

Submitted by RICK on April 8, 2009 - 11:23am.

I know a few that I have talked to that would serve on the committee. But, they will never be invited to do so. None are employed by the county or the city. None have ever help public office. But, they do have some wonderful ideas and have worked in the background fighting TVA from day one of this disaster.
Tony Brown is a very respected and intelligent man. His organizational skills are next to none. I think he would be a wondefrul addition to the committee. He would be my choice also. But, if for some reason it does not work out, yes there are others who would do the job as best they could.

Do I misunderstand? I HOPE so!

Submitted by RoaneBooster on April 8, 2009 - 12:10pm.

"His organizational skills are next to none."

Tony Brown? He has exhibited excellent organizational skills! Next to none, next to nothing? I don't think so. Perhaps "second to none."

RB

Oh...

Submitted by RICK on April 8, 2009 - 11:27am.

And whoever is chosen as a replacement for Matt Caldwell, get ready for the ride. And I hope you can dodge the bullets (figure of speech here, not a threat). Trust me, they are fired at every meeting. But, keep on smiling!!!!

Let council know where you stand

Submitted by BrantWW on April 8, 2009 - 12:08pm.

Please let members of Kingston city council know how you feel on this issue.

  • Appoint Mr. Brown regardless of his pending position with the county, or
  • Withhold the appointment until we find out if he will continue to work with the county and if he is don't appoint another.

sorry RB

Submitted by RICK on April 8, 2009 - 12:24pm.

I mispoke, or should I say wrote it wrong. I meant that his organizational skills were excellent. Never was one to consider myself an English Scholar. Thanks for the correction.

Trust me, Rick, I understand!

Submitted by RoaneBooster on April 8, 2009 - 12:55pm.

That's why I wrote my comment as a question... I would have been shocked had you meant in the way it SOUNDED... but I am the KING of typing things in a way that folks think I'm saying something else than what I mean - so don't feel bad!

RB

Tony is a great person and

Submitted by harriman1 on April 8, 2009 - 5:29pm.

Tony is a great person and manager. But come on there has to be other people in the community that has not been in the so called political spotlight. Why do we here in Roane recycle people from position to position? It is not really a great move to get more people involved in government.

Recycling

Submitted by loveofcountry on April 8, 2009 - 9:02pm.

Some people don't get involved just for that reason.
Other have broken through.
If we want a change the same will not do.

I agree that Tony is well suited to serve on the committee.....

Submitted by randmart on April 9, 2009 - 9:49am.

but a new face would have been a good idea. I am finding that the the political circle at the County and City levels is very difficult to penetrate. Decisions as to various committee members don't seem made by any sort of vote by the Councils/Commission involved and qualifications are secondary. The good ole boy system is alive and well!

Randy Martens for Kingston City Council
"Common Sense For Good Government"
(link...)

This is Mike's Committee

Submitted by WhitesCreek on April 9, 2009 - 10:01am.

Mike Farmer formed this committee himself. As far as I know, it has no basis in law or anything else except the powers granted to the County Executive. Give that some thought.

That's probably true....

Submitted by randmart on April 9, 2009 - 11:26am.

I would think that anything they do or recommend would be limited to Farmer's authority to act. The County Commission would ultimately be responsible for approving action beyond that.

Organization: Both together and apart

Submitted by loveofcountry on April 19, 2009 - 7:49pm.

Given that just maybe the organization is all wrong.
Instead of Cities working under the County Executive
maybe this should have been arranged as a coalition of equal sorts.
County, Cities, businesses, and those affected too
not under anyone's powers, but together as marriage of more than two
What good does it do to have a committee of a few
with no power to get done the things that must be done
even though they have City reps, what power has the City
given on their behalf to fight?
Has the City relinquished all responsibility to the County Executive?
I think not.
The coalition could work together and decide when they are apart
to plan the plan that serves their constituent's hearts.
Both together and apart.

Brown declines

Submitted by loveofcountry on April 19, 2009 - 7:24pm.

RCN reports such.
Discussions and claims
air out all the thoughts,
potential pit falls, and talks
Without discussion why even talk
government would just be nice
for those elected with our trust
However, that is not reality, no it's not
Discussion must take place
tough talk and all.
Decisions must be aired out in plain sight
so all thoughts and options
can be considered just right.
Why not accept applications from the general
public at large, surely someone can suit us
and do us some good for all
Council often thinks of friends that they know
but the City is much bigger, surely they know
The process does not have to be long
just open and bright
then we can move mountains of ash
even at night
The City needs representation that is broad and diverse
so they can think of all the options on Earth
Don't take things personally, as many people's lives are at stake
Their homes, their kids, their future retirement estate
Personal feelings muddy up the air
It's muddy enough around here and there
The City must use due diligence to get back on course
think it out, search it out, then share with us, of course

Comment viewing options

Select your preferred way to display the comments and click "Save settings" to activate your changes.

Eco warriors and politics

Science and stuff

Lost Medicaid Funding

To date, the failure to expand Medicaid / TennCare has cost the State of Tennessee ? in lost federal funding.

Sponsors