LNTC falls apart. Mayors to meet Monday to plan way forward.

With last week's action by Huntersville to withdraw from the LNTC, it was just a matter of time before the other shoes dropped.  That happened this week.

On Tuesday, Davidson voted to withdraw from LNTC by a vote of 3-2 with Commissioners Fuller and Jenest opposing it. (Officially, it was 3-1 due to Jenest being on the phone and only present voters count.)  As part of the vote, they retained the right to revisit the decision to withdraw at the next regularly scheduled meeting in March. On Friday, Cornelius is likely to do the same at a special meeting called for that purpose.

There is some question on the validity of the Davidson vote, as it was not on the published agenda, and the agenda that was published actually said the work session portion of the meeting was cancelled.  Questions are out to the Town and UNC-SOG to see if this can be verified.

However, it was the Davidson meeting on Tuesday that gives a little insight into what may be coming in the very near future.  The video is here.  Its the first 45 minutes.

Apparently, this coming Monday there will be a closed meeting of area mayors to discuss a way forward. The meeting was called by Davidson Mayor John Woods.  A few additional staff may be there, but Woods specifically indicated that this would be a non quorum meeting and that the media was not invited.

There was much wailing and gnashing of teeth in Davidson about how the region had gotten to this point with Woods using the word "bullying" to describe Huntersville actions.  Commissioner Fuller also appeared upset, and Commissioner Jenest who was on the phone seemed particularly disappointed.

One thing that became clear from the Davidson video is why the action is all taking place now within the towns. There is apparently a 4 month notice clause in the LNTC interlocal agreement for members to pull out of the group.  Since funding of the body comes from the town budgets a decision has to be made now.   March 1st is 4 months prior to the July 1st start of the new budget year.

Davidson's Board seemed most concerned about whether they would be on the hook with Mooresville alone to fund the body if both Cornelius and Huntersville had dropped out.  That, much more than a belief the LNTC had no value, appeared to be the driving force behind their withdrawal.

Monday's Mayors' meeting will be interesting.  My hope is that Huntersville Mayor Aneralla is wearing his body armor.  My guess is that he will be the target of many barbs from the other mayors.

Some might call holding that meeting behind closed doors where that can't be seen to be "bullying".

But hey...that's just me.

Election 2015 Huntersville recommendations...

Election Day is upon us and it is time to head to the polls. Here are some suggestions for Huntersville based on the methodology outlined in my upcomong column from this week's Herald Weekly.  Be sure to check that out on Thursday.

This election cycle, Huntersville is where most of the big action takes place. With over a dozen candidates for the Town Board and the area's only contested mayoral election, there is more to choose from here than anywhere else.

For Town Board you can't go wrong with incumbents Rob Kidwell and Danny Phillips along with newcomer Mark Gibbons.

Commissioners Kidwell and Phillips have proven themselves to be independent voices on the board rather than always walking in lockstep with the leadership on the dias.  They deserve reelection.  Challenger Mark Gibbons also has proven his commitment and willingness to fight for what is best for Huntersville and this region, serving as a prominent leader in the effort to stop the I77 HOT lanes project.

Together, these three gentlemen can ensure Huntersville's best interests are protected as the larger region grows.  They will not reflexively cave to the constant drum beat of "regionalism" coming out of Charlotte.  North Mecklenburg needs its largest municipality to have that kind of backbone if we are to prevent being constantly pummelled by the 800lb gorilla to our south.

On the mayoral side, the choice is also clear.

While I do not know Mayor Swain personally, people who do seem to think she is a very nice person.  HOWEVER, this is not a high school popularity contest.

Huntersville needs a leader willing to go to the mat for the town on large regional issues and Mayor Swain simply is not that person.  Maybe Mayor Swain has gotten too comfortable at Huntersville town hall having been there for a long, looong time.  Her lack of much of a visible campaign effort this cycle also gives the impression of a sense of entitlement that should never be apparent in an elected official.

Regardless, it is time for new blood.

Fortunately for Huntersville, challenger John Aneralla can provide the leadership that has been missing.

Aneralla is no stranger to the political process having run for office at the state level previously.  He also serves on the boards overseeing the State's retirement system which is one of the largest in the country.

Aneralla is on record opposing the I77 HOT lanes from his previous runs for office, so he is not a "jonny come lately" to the anti-toll effort.

In the role of Mayor, voters want someone who will break ties the right way - giving thoughtful consideration to all sides of an issue and not just doing what is popular to a select few.

Electing John Aneralla gives that to Huntersville.

Just my 2 cents...

NC Senate 41 Forum

The race for the new NC Senate 41 district took center stage at Cornelius Town Hall Tuesday evening. There were 50-75 people in attendance for what was one of the more informative debates I've seen this season. If you missed it, it will be broadcast on Mi-Connection Channel 4 by the end of Thursday - an exact time is still TBD.

Maybe the most important thing to say was this district is fortunate to have such a slate of high quality people running. I was particularly impressed with political newcomer Troy Stafford of Cornelius. While he may not have the necessary name recognition this time around, Mr Stafford certainly held his own against some experienced debaters. Robby Benton pointed out that this race has been much cleaner than some in the area, and compared to the sometimes bitter race for NC-9 that's certainly correct. Dr Copeland tried to steel the show with some good one liners. If the number of laughs was the criteria for winning the debate, he was certainly in the running.

NC Senate 41 Endorsements...Co-Worker Opinions



Cornelius Today posted a pair of dueling endorsements last week which more than anything else I've seen can be used as a proxy for who may be seen as the most "conservative" candidate in the race for NC Senate 41. See "Gilroy endorses Aneralla; Woods endorses Tarte" at the link.

What makes these endorsements more interesting than most is the fact that both endorsers work directly with one of the candidates on actual governing - serving on boards and making decisions together.  That they come to different conclusions on who will govern "best" as a NC Senator says a good bit about who will be the most conservative.

Dueling Press Releases In NC Senate 41 Race Reveal Inconsistency For One Candidate

The two most well known candidates for NC Senate 41 issued dueling press releases Tuesday regarding their transportation priorities - one of the hot topics in the district.

Both mentioned widening I-77 as their top priority, but that's where the similarities ended.

Former NC GOP Chairman John Aneralla clearly stated his opposition to the Red Line Regional Rail project in his statement while Cornelius Mayor Jeff Tarte conspicuously failed to mention the most discussed (and most expensive) project in his notice to the press.