Wednesday, February 14, 2001

I have been following the articles focusing on Mayor Lenox's last year in office with great interest. [The Feb. 2 Peachtree Citizen Review] article was especially interesting and I have to say I am constantly amazed by the things Bob Lenox says and the discourse being conducted between our city and county leaders. His comments near the end of the article concern me the most.

Mayor Lenox feels that since 90 percent of our citizens are silent that they are satisfied with the status quo and that if they don't speak up, "you are going to wake up a year from now and find the crazies are running City Hall." That is quite a leap of understanding of what is on the minds of our citizens. I guess I am one of those crazies then, because I am not satisfied with the status quo.

We as a city run the great risk of becoming what we fear the most. That is that we will become a simple slice of what is known as "Generica." That term refers to driving down the street one day and opening your eyes and not knowing where you are because everything looks the same. The road is lined with half-filled strip malls fronted by five different fast food restaurants, three banks, two pharmacies and only stunted half-dead trees anywhere in view. Drive up Cobb Parkway or Ga. Highway 85 and you will know what I mean.

Mayor Lenox, the average citizen is not speaking up because they don't have time. They are not millionaires. They are too busy getting in their car at 6 in the morning and commuting to Atlanta or rushing to the airport to catch their flight. They are speeding home to try and get their kids to soccer, track and softball practice. They eat dinner around the family table and do homework until 8 when it is time to start getting the kids ready for bed, ironing a shirt and preparing for another day of fast-paced suburban life.

Those citizens love Peachtree City. They moved here to get away from the endless concrete strip that is the northside of Atlanta. They moved here for the best schools in the state and probably the finest recreation programs anyone has ever seen. They moved here because PTC is a unique place in the bustle of modern life and they don't want it to become what they escaped.

I have talked to a lot of those "silent majority" members and these are some of things that they are interested in: They want to know why their kids are attending class in trailers in the most affluent county in Georgia. They want to know why it is so hard to start and maintain a small business in this city. They want to know why the city is obsessed with the Industrial Park but ignores Braelinn Village's four empty shops and abandoned McDonald's eyesore, while two new strip malls are being built less than two miles away.

They can't understand why the Cub Scouts had to move their day camp outside city limits because the city refused to grant them a waiver to shoot bows and arrows and BB guns under police supervision. They are scratching their heads trying to understand why our mayor's priority is the Bob Lenox Cultural Arts Center when the All Children's Playground can barely find enough money to be built and they have to drive to the Fayette YMCA to find a decent playground.

The silent majority of this town is tired of watching our city leaders sue each other, accuse each other of ethics violations, approve additional zoning waivers and arrogantly embarrass this city in the eyes of the Atlanta metro region with sarcastic letters, foolish ordinances and snobbish attitudes.

So, I guess you will have to count me as crazy because I intend to do everything I can to get that 90 percent silent majority to use their voice this fall and throw out the status quo.

It is time to move this city from being a "development" to being a city and then hopefully those "crazy" people will get out and listen to the rest of their constituents rather than the 10 percent that is making all of the noise now.

Fred Wellman

Peachtree City

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