{"id":2093,"date":"2021-01-07T19:10:27","date_gmt":"2021-01-08T01:10:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/truthinaddison.com\/?page_id=2093"},"modified":"2021-04-08T19:10:23","modified_gmt":"2021-04-09T00:10:23","slug":"here-come-the-negatives-again","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/truthinaddison.com\/?page_id=2093","title":{"rendered":"Here Come the Negatives\u2026 Again"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Here Come the Negatives\u2026 Again
Here Come the Efforts to Divide Us\u2026 Again
Time to Stay the Course, Addison
By Susan M. Halpern
Former Addison Councilmember (1992-1999)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some of you may have received a long, rambling letter from Addison\u2019s toxic ex-mayor. The letter generally follows the formula of the negatives and naysayers, about which we have written a great deal. The negatives create a faux issue, mischaracterize it, often by fabricating \u201cfacts,\u201d claim the sky is falling, attack anyone who isn\u2019t them, and then claim that only they can resolve the faux issue. This approach has never been in the best interests of Addison, but that has never stopped the negatives. They do whatever they perceive will serve their own interests, even \u2013 and often \u2013 at Addison\u2019s expense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, we can never forget that the author of this bizarre letter is the same ex-mayor who actively sought negative publicity for Addison, including when running a campaign of lies in 2016 in the hopes of retaining his control of the council. Back then, he used taxpayer money to fund a sycophant accountant who inappropriately leveled one-sided and unsupported attacks against staff in support of that campaign. The ex-mayor then orchestrated the illegal withholding of the key Lea Dunn memo that refuted the basis for all of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thankfully, Addison voters rejected negativity and elected Mayor Joe Chow and other councilmembers who have led Addison forward with respect for a true democratic process. But Addison can never forget the outrageous acts and episodes \u2013 and there were so, so many \u2013 that define the ex-mayor\u2019s awful legacy. The fact is that this ex-mayor gave Addison a front row seat to the harm a divisive, dictatorial individual can cause when he places his own ambitions above the interests of the community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For its part, Addison has moved on and is doing fine, even in the midst of a pandemic. Addison is addressing many long-overdue capital and infrastructure projects, including some (like the fountain at Addison Circle) that councils led by the ex-mayor refused to address in prior budgets. Public support for such projects was amply demonstrated when Addison voters passed a $70 million bond package in 2019, and responded overwhelmingly in support of addressing Addison\u2019s aging infrastructure in the most recent citizens survey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Addison has also remedied the ongoing employee compensation problems. The ex-mayor continually refused to do so, resulting in short-staffing in the police and fire departments and an exodus of talented management-level employees in multiple departments. But then, the ex-mayor\u2019s contempt for the Addison police department is evident in the false accusations contained in his letter, made without disclosing that his dissatisfaction arises out of a case involving an individual described in court papers as his \u201csignificant other.\u201d Context is everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Addison has responsibly grown its staff in response to the continuing increase in Addison\u2019s population. In one case, changing market conditions created an increased demand for outside vendors, who overcommitted and became unreliable, so Addison took the tasks in house. Addison\u2019s tax rate funds the services and amenities its residents expect and, most notably, compares favorably with comparator communities. Addison has been proactive in supporting businesses during the unprecedented circumstances of the past year, when the struggles of restaurants and other businesses have been amply documented.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ex-mayor\u2019s failure to present all sides of these and other issues comes as no surprise. It has always been the hallmark of his public communications. He shamelessly manipulates \u201cfacts,\u201d misrepresenting and withholding information as suits his purposes, all while proclaiming his \u201ctransparency.\u201d When he was mayor, he seized control of Addison\u2019s newsletter, rebranding it as his own, and then misusing this Addison-owned resource to mischaracterize and misrepresent issues, to undermine and attack his opponents, and to otherwise mislead Addison residents. That he now writes that \u201cno one ever complained about being uninformed\u201d when he was in office is patently false. His monopolization of this Addison-owned resource was HIGHLY controversial and was the subject of countless complaints and multiple Council meetings and agendas. Many of us vociferously objected to the dishonest nature of his writings and his blatant misuse of this public, government-owned publication. Misleading constituents \u2013 no matter how often it is done \u2013 is not transparency. Transparency is rooted in TRUTH, not volume, and TRUTH was always in short supply with the ex-mayor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s another thing. Council term limits have not been eliminated. They have been part of Addison\u2019s Charter since 1993. And, Addison\u2019s Charter can only be amended by holding a Charter election such as the one held in November 2020. The Council has no authority to change the Charter on its own. Further, as part of the November 2020 Charter election, Addison voters passed a proposition eliminating self-nomination for candidates for Mayor and Council, and requiring petitions of at least 25 signatures (no more than 50). This is the practice of many other comparator cities and, because it applies with equal force to incumbents and non-incumbents, it favors neither. And finally, Addison\u2019s Council does not \u201csecretly\u201d meet. Ever. Its meetings are publicly noticed as required by the Open Meetings Act.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All of which confirms that the Council never \u201csecretly\u201d met, including to change the Charter provision on term limits or to \u201cmake it more difficult to unseat incumbents.\u201d These statements by the ex-mayor in his letter are utterly false and irresponsible. The fact that he made them demonstrates beyond any doubt that he continues to be untethered to TRUTH and completely untrustworthy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But then, his letter isn\u2019t the first time the ex-mayor has weaponized the issue of term limits. In 2017, the ex-mayor falsely claimed that current Mayor Joe Chow and Councilmember Tom Braun were ineligible because they had previously served on the council. He disseminated this claim just two days before early voting started \u2013 another misuse of Addison\u2019s email list \u2013 leaving virtually no time to correct his misstatements before voters started casting early ballots. And, he omitted critical facts, not the least of which was that his argument about lifetime versus successive term limits had been rejected by Addison\u2019s City Attorney, who quoted the wording of the 1993 ballot proposition (\u201cconsecutive\u201d)  and the Charter (\u201csuccessive\u201d) in concluding:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA plain reading of the ballot proposition indicates that the proposed limit was on \u201cconsecutive terms\u201d not \u201cterms.\u201d To read it otherwise would render the words \u201cconsecutive\u201d or \u201csuccessive\u201d as a useless appendage. Had the term limit considered by the voters intended to limit an individual to a lifetime total of three terms in office, the word \u201cconsecutive\u201d would not have been included in the ballot language.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The impact of these omissions was amplified by the ex-mayor\u2019s concurrent claims that he\u2019d left no stone unturned in an effort to resolve the question, when in TRUTH, the City Attorney had already done so. When the other members of the Council recognized the need to correct the record, most easily accomplished by releasing the attorney\u2019s memorandum, the ex-mayor stonewalled their efforts, trying to delay them until early voting had concluded. Thankfully, the Council proceeded without him, and voted to release the attorney\u2019s memorandum. But by then, five days of early voting had occurred, and some ballots were undoubtedly cast in reliance on the ex-mayor\u2019s false and misleading claims. The whole episode reveals much about the ex-mayor. His latest missive is just more of the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Questioning minds might wonder why the ex-mayor has chosen this moment to once again spew his typical misinformation, mischaracterizations and fabrications. The timing is curious, as his letter is hitting mailboxes just days before the beginning of candidate filing for the May 2021 municipal election. So, is it a genuine call for candidates? Or perhaps a trial balloon designed to suggest or gauge reaction to a potential platform for negative candidates? Or is this just another setup, paving the way for claims by the ex-mayor that his letter spurred \u201crequests\u201d that he run again, a ploy designed to invent \u201csupport?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whatever the purpose, one thing is clear: Addison needs to have a very long memory about the toxic atmosphere and division the ex-mayor fomented at the expense of the community, as well as his willingness to say absolutely anything to support his apparent thirst for power and control. This is not an individual to whom Addison should look for lectures about leadership or how to run our town.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Addison\u2019s citizens and subsequent councils have toiled long and hard to repair the damage caused by the ex-mayor and his cadre. Now is not the time to turn back. Now is the time to renew our commitment to positive governance and excellence, and to continue supporting Addison\u2019s return to the Addison Way of doing things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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