Why this year’s General Municipal Election is so important for the City of Calhoun

constantly commenting on reading about the bickering and what appears to be personal agendas from several on the council. Most of the information, of course, came from the Calhoun Times, and neither I, nor any of my staff are in any way embarrassed or ashamed of anything we’ve reported in the last couple of years: everything has been factual and based upon what happens in their meetings.

Because no matter how much one of the council members complains that I am making them look bad and I need to be on board with their agenda, that’s not my job. My job is to EXPOSE what is going on, both good and bad. It’s called news. And when I see the personal interests that are being paraded around in these council meetings, along with the conflict and strife they are causing, I will report on it all day long.

And while I was also asked through the grapevine by a council member to “take it easy on the City of Calhoun,” I’d respond with a hearty laugh, because anyone that knows me knows that when I see injustice, I bite. As the good Sports Editor likes to say: “Give Brandi a bullet and she’ll fire it.”

And before someone accuses me of only wanting to tear the city down, that’s not the case: I am a city girl. I grew up in the City of Calhoun. As a matter of fact, I’m so disgusted by everything that’s going on, I’ve actually taken a small break from the meetings because it’s so mentally exhausting to report on these horrible things.

So why is this General Municipal Election so important for the City of Calhoun? It’s important because, if changes are not made, there will be at least two more years of bickering, embarrassment, and a city that can get nothing accomplished.

Let’s start with the good news: Councilman David Hammond decided not to run again. He said it’s because he believes so highly in term limits, but let’s face it; after reporting a few of his fiascos over the last couple of years, he really didn’t have a chance to win his re-election. People are extremely upset over the whole Larry Vickery debacle. If you’re not familiar with that, David Hammond decided in the summer of 2016 that it’d be a great idea to reorganize the City of Calhoun’s Organizational Chart and eliminate the position of Director of Utilities (sometimes called General Manager). That position was held by Larry Vickery, who had held the position for years and had won multiple national awards for Calhoun Utilities. He basically ran the $60 million-a-year business for the City (that being utilities).

To tell you how valued Larry Vickery is, not just to Calhoun, but to the State of Georgia, his peers with the other 48 Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia cities elected him to the Board of Directors for MEAG...and even though he no longer works in Calhoun Utilities because of Hammond’s grand idea, he still holds that position on the Board of Directors for MEAG because he is so valued for his knowledge of utilities! Let that sink in: Calhoun at this time has no one that knows all utilities across the board (water, sewer and electricity) because the council voted to eliminate the position, but the person who was in the position is still heavily sought after by MEAG because of his expertise.

So what does all of this have to do with the election? The voters of the great City of Calhoun have a chance to correct this by voting out one of Hammond’s puppets who is up for re-election.

Matt Barton, who holds Post 3, has consistently voted alongside David Hammond. While he seems like a very nice guy anytime I talk to him, I’ve never seen him bring anything original to the table. Nothing. Every comment he makes is an agreement of anything Hammond says.

So, when David Hammond couldn’t give a solid reason why the city should eliminate the Director of Utilities position other than streamlining and giving younger people a chance to lead, Barton had every opportunity to oppose that and ask for facts and figures, or to have a study drawn up on how this would affect the city. But he didn’t. With a smile on his face, he voted right along side of puppet master David Hammond and council member Jackie Palazzolo.

Politics, no matter what this new generation thinks, is not a popularity contest, or at least it shouldn’t be. In a perfect world, people who are knowledgeable and bring workable ideas to the table are the ones who should be sitting in office making decisions for the city.

But that hasn’t happened with Barton, because I can’t find one thing he has brought to the table for Calhoun in the past two years, other than scratching Hammond’s back.

I feel bad for Mayor Jimmy Palmer, councilman Al Edwards and City Administrator Eddie Peterson. They are trying so hard to keep the city together and make decisions that work for ALL of Calhoun, not for a select few in the Calhoun Clique. And it pains me to watch Hammond and Company make the decisions they make while not being able to explain what this will do to the city of Calhoun; how it will affect us. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say they are purposefully making decisions to go against Mayor Palmer, almost like the vendetta they have is against him.

But as bad as I feel for the Mayor, Edwards and Peterson, I feel worse for the City employees; people like utility workers and firemen and policemen and customer service. Some of these good people have worked at the City for decades, and we hear from them. Some feel threatened that if they don’t go along with the Three Amigos and their agenda, they will lose their jobs. They won’t speak up because of the fear. And that just seems wrong to me, and possibly borderline illegal.

And the Vickery debacle is just one in a long line of fiascos. We now have, on the ballot this year, a vote on how we feel about term limits. Of course, it’s non-binding...just a little something to gauge how voters are feeling, but that took a lot of time and research for a City Attorney that’s being paid by the hour. And whose idea was it? Hammond. And who voted for it? Barton.

While a national office might seriously need term limits, these small towns and communities really don’t... if the voters are tired of an elected official, they’ll vote them out. Why limit the voters choice if a top performing public servant may currently be in office but have to bow out because of a term limit?

Again, Barton had every opportunity to ask for research and see what other cities actually do that, but he didn’t. He voted with his good pal Hammond.

And after seeing Hammond in action, I’d never let him talk me into which color to choose for my car, much less which way to vote.

Do we really want a puppet in office? Do we really want someone who will continue to push an agenda and not think for himself?

This vote is so important, and I encourage all city residents to get out and vote. Early voting began this week and runs through Friday, November 3.

And if you’re a county resident who can’t vote but would like to help out, I encourage you to pray about it. Pray about this election. Because it wasn’t too long ago that you were in this boat, and as the General Municipal Election of 2015 proved, all it takes is one election to totally ruin something productive.