Published: October 31, 2009 11:14 pm      

Issues matter most to Varnell residents

Many Varnell residents probably can’t wait for Tuesday for the City Council and mayoral races to be over.

For the second year in a row, those campaigns have been marked by mudslinging, insults, and generally childish behavior on the part of supporters of various candidates. For the most part, the candidates themselves have held themselves above the name-calling, but they haven’t exactly sent a strong and clear message to their supporters that they don’t like it and believe it hurts them more than it helps. It probably wouldn’t stop all of the gossip and innuendo, but a strong statement might cut down some of it.

It’s a shame that some Varnell residents focus on such petty matters. There are plenty of important issues facing the city, and when candidates have been able to be heard above the din, they have actually talked about them

Varnell leaders like to point out they are one of the fastest growing cities in the state, rising from around 350 residents in the 1990 census to more than 1,500 in 2000.

With a new high school and sewer coming to the area, that growth will likely continue. Varnell’s leaders need to be planning now on how to deal with that growth and provide services to all the new residents the city will attract. At the same time, they need to be aware of the act that city, like the nation, is in recession. They need to make sure they aren’t taking on more projects than they can manage or afford at this time.

When Varnell voters go to the polling booth on Tuesday, they need to ask themselves which candidates seem best prepared to lead the city over the next four years, not which ones had the noisiest supporters or the nastiest things to say about the other guy.



The Daily Citizen