Letter to the Mayor (and City Council)

I don't know about you, but I'm a little tired of all of us candidates for the At Large seat on the Winder City Council stepping on eggshells and not taking up the issues of the day because we are afraid to offend anyone or lose a vote. 

I have taken issue with the fact that the City Administrator's recent directive to the staff to clean up private property in the City is unethical if not illegal. I have sent a letter to the Mayor today I've copied the City Council requesting their action. 

Whether or not this earns me votes, it's the RIGHT thing to do, and it is a worthy example of how I would want to ask the difficult questions and challenge the status quo. My letter is included below:

Nicole R. Tobias
87 Fern Valley Lane
Winder, GA 30680

October 19, 2013

Mayor David Maynard
P.O. Box 566 
Winder, GA 30680

Dear Mayor: 

I am writing to you today as a citizen of Winder with a concern I would like you to consider and address. 

On September 3 and 4, 2013 it was determined that personnel employed by, and equipment owned by, the City of Winder was utilized to remove items from private property within the city. It was also determined that those items were transported to a privately owned landfill. Initially, the total cost of this complete transaction was paid for by the City at taxpayer expense. 

It was reported by the Barrow Journal on September 18, 2013 that when this information was reported to you, you chose to immediately halt the work. This would lead me to believe that you perceived it as a conflict of interest, as unethical and/or illegal. Since that article, however, it seems that the investigation of, and response to, the poor decision making on behalf of the administration of the City of Winder has also ceased, or it never began. 

In a phone conversation we had a few weeks ago, you stated that the City of Winder is unable to make direct financial contributions to individuals or agencies. You are correct. As cited in the Handbook for Georgia Mayors and Councilmembers (2012), “A municipality cannot make a gift that conveys government property to a private party” (p. 7). It is certainly arguable, and worthy of investigation, that the use of City personnel and equipment on private property is a gift of that cost of labor and use of equipment to the person whose property was cleaned. 

While I have come to learn that a donation was made to reimburse the City for the expense, the donation does not excuse or mitigate the initial decision. 

It seems to me that if any other employee of the City were to direct staff of the City to do something illegal, their employment would have been terminated by the City Administrator. How is it, then, that the City Administrator is not being held accountable to the same standards and expectations as other City staff? I would argue that, as the Chief Executive Officer of the City, the standards and expectations should be even higher for him. He has the education and experience that would have prepared him to know when his decision-making caused illegal activity. 

I am encouraging the Mayor and the City Council to have this matter investigated by an external agency and not allow it to be "swept under the rug". It is Mr. Toms' responsibility to keep the Mayor, the Council, the City, and himself out of legal trouble, not to invite it. 

An external investigation could determine if the directive or the cleanup was illegal. It could also help to alleviate the perception that the relationship between the Mayor, City Council and the City Administrator is without checks and balances. It would also show the residents of the City of Winder that you are a Mayor who “is ready to do his best to lead this city, ‘under God and morally’, in the right direction” as your bio states. 

Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to hearing about the next steps and the outcomes of your receipt of this letter. 


Sincerely,
Nicole R. Tobias
Resident
Winder, GA

cc: Members of the Winder City Council