Dunwoody Chooses Cityhood

On July 15, 2008 35% of the registered voters in Dunwoody had reason to party. By a dominant four to one vote they had just passed a referendum creating a city of Dunwoody, culminating years of hard work and intensive promotion on the behalf of cityhood.

It was an emotional moment.

It was an emotional decision.

Therein lies the problem. Enduring civic decisions are supported by three things:

1. Intellectual integrity: this requires open discourse and public vetting of all decisions, findings and reports.
2. Moral integrity: in addition to universally accepted moral codes, all organizations are based on core principles, and organizations of integrity operate within the framework of those principles.
3. Emotional appeal: viability requires a certain feel good quality to engender support and compensate for the disadvantages of inevitable compromise.

The citizens of Dunwoody were offered nothing but emotional appeal -- voters were encouraged to vote solely on the belief that city rule must be better than county rule. As the situation unfolds it is increasingly clear that information was intentionally withheld and that core principles established in the campaign for cityhood are scheduled to be violated.

This was done by a relatively small group, who appointed themselves in charge of Dunwoody's future, while ignoring the obligation to their fellow citizens that comes with this responsibility. Because the city will draw its first mayor and council from this small group, only a fool would expect them to behave differently than in the past.

So what can we, the remaining 65%, The Other Dunwoody do?

First, the rules have changed. While private corporations can operate in secrecy, a city in violation of sunshine laws can and should be held accountable. Activities that would have taken place in secret before the referendum are now subject to open records requests. The Other Dunwoody provides a forum for posting these interactions and documents, especially those that public servants would prefer to keep secret.

Second, it is incumbent on all citizens to strip the cloak of anonymity from public officials. There is no "we". There is no "they". City councils don't make decisions, individual council members do. Ordinances, regulations, procedures and contracts don't magically pop out of a printer. Flesh and blood humans put finger to keyboard and pen to paper authoring and authorizing documents that affect our lives. These individuals must take credit and criticism for their actions. As truths are revealed they will find a home in The Other Dunwoody.

Finally, we must never stop observing, never stop questioning. As in the past, we can expect passive aggression: most serious questions will go ignored, or worse, receive a patronizing, pandering political misdirection. To aid in the quest for information, The Other Dunwoody will maintain a list of Frequently UNanswered Questions: FUNQs.

TOD