Letters to the editor
Posted on Sunday, October 5, 2008
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/nwat/Editorial/69791/
Who we need is Walt Eilers
I am writing to publicly endorse Walt Eilers for mayor of Fayetteville, and to encourage Fayetteville voters to really stop and think about the best way to keep a good thing going. I believe it’s important to point out that although I have been very active in the Fayetteville community, in the 29 years since I became a registered voter this is the first time I have ever publicly endorsed a candidate for any office. I am fully committed to supporting this candidate for mayor, because I am passionate about my hometown and know that now, more than ever, we need an experienced and successful leader at its helm.
I first met and worked with Walt when he chaired the Chamber of Commerce’s new Communications Committee, which was formed to guide the chamber’s effort to more effectively reach out to the business community and the customers they served. I quickly discovered that Walt possessed the rare gift of collaborative let’s-getit-done leadership. When given a problem to solve, Walt assembles a knowledgeable group of colleagues, ignites in them his passion for the task at hand, and then facilitates teamwork to quickly and strategically find and implement the best solution. A more current example of his brand of collaborative leadership is the Green Heart Initiative, a successful commercial recycling pilot program that was introduced by Walt and his team in early May. Although the project was his initiative, when congratulated on the success of the trial, Walt’s response was, “ This is a collaboration; my role was just to get it started. ”
Fayetteville itself is a collaboration between you and me and our local businesses and our public schools and the chamber and the University of Arkansas and every other Fayetteville citizen and entity in-between. And let’s not forget the hundreds of city employees who could be offended at the inference that keeping a good thing going is dependent on the reelection of one team member. The success or failure of Fayetteville’s future hinges not on one man, but on our ability to work together. Yes, our hometown has come a long way in the last several years, but how much further could we have come if we had an experienced collaborative leader who could more effectively unite and harness the power of our citizenry ?
Certainly what we need moving forward is a mayor with a proven track record in budgeting, negotiations, crisis management, corporate leadership and problem solving. But we also need someone who welcomes the voices of a diverse populace. An inspiring leader and proven problem solver who is confident and seasoned enough at the end of the day to step back and say, ‘ This is a collaboration; my role was just to get it started. ’ What we need is Walt Eilers. So, yes, by all means, let’s keep a good thing going. But let’s do so by electing the candidate who will empower all of us to be the best we can be together.
Gwen Darling
Fayetteville
A word of support for the chicken law
News is that the Fayetteville City Council is soon to consider a bill allowing people to keep four chickens in their backyards. I am in favor of this; it sounds like a very small step in the right direction. I hope it will pass and be followed by further steps to increase the ability of Fayetteville residents to legally raise livestock animals. I favor this proposal for several reasons. First, I respect the property of others. When someone has a house and yard, it is usually because they have spent many years working hard to make the money for it, and I think this should give them some reasonable ownership rights. Their great effort ought to buy them a patch of land where they can do as they want unless it is really damaging someone else. I mean real damage, not just minor irritation. We’ve just seen Bikes, Blues and BBQ with the roar of motorcycles and helicopters filling the town, and I’m not against motorcycles and I’m not against the Bikes, Blues & BBQ event. But such noise, along with frequent sirens, surely stress the nerves far more than the sounds of chickens. Personally, I find chickens quite beautiful, pleasant and interesting. And second, we see the national economy now rapidly becoming depressed. Banks are failing and we are being told it will soon become much more difficult to borrow money; money will be tight for some years, as during the 1930 s. Many Americans survived the Depression of the 1930 s largely because of the ability to raise substantial amounts of food on their own property when they did not have the money to buy it at the stores. It looks like we are moving into a similar situation now and anything people can do to raise food at home will be very helpful in getting through nonaffluent times. The laws should not prevent people from doing what they can to raise their own food at home. No reasonable, decent person considers that to be a crime. It is a great virtue that ought to be encouraged. Personally, I’d like to see people able to keep more than four chickens and rabbits and goats and even cows and horses if they have the space. Such would be extremely helpful for many people to get through the economic hard times that appear to be inevitably coming, and the manure of such animals is very valuable in helping to grow vegetables and fruits as well. So I hope the four chicken law will pass and be followed by further steps in this beneficial direction.
Joe Alexander
Fayetteville
Clark will bring experience and solutions
This is a critical election for the city of Fayetteville. For those of us who love this city and all it brings to our lives, we need someone who brings experience and solutions to the job. As the attorney general of Arkansas, chief of staff to Gov. Pryor, judge, lawyer, professor and small business owner, Steve brings a wealth of local, state and global solutions and experience. Steve has relationships with governors, legislators and mayors across the state and across the country. He has working relationships with 10 U. S. Senators and multiple members of the U. S. House of Representatives. Steve will bring this national leadership to a local level here in Fayetteville. Steve has been a part of Fayetteville since the 1960 s and has watched its evolution from a sleepy college town to a truly global city. Having owned several businesses, he understands the challenges some of our business people face in today’s city government. He understands the importance of our downtown and entertainment district and knows the importance of keeping the arts alive and thriving in our city. He knows the value of our neighborhoods and areas of town, such as south Fayetteville, where his vision of a regional park using private and public funds can make our city a recreational destination for people from across the county. Steve knows the value of attracting large businesses to the area. Fayetteville used to be the No. 1 city in the USA for which to live and do business, but now we have fallen to 57 th on that list. Steve understands that for Fayetteville to succeed, the working environment and economic base of small and large businesses has to improve. Not in my lifetime has Fayetteville had someone with a combination of national experience, state and local leadership, relationships at the highest levels and a love for this city run for mayor. He will be a global ambassador while always working for the individual citizen of our great city. He has a great relationship with many city council members and will improve the working relationship with that great group of people. He will keep a focus on Fayetteville’s future while preserving Fayetteville’s character. This is a critical election for the city of Fayetteville. I encourage all citizens to look at the issues facing our city. I think you will find Steve Clark is the only one with real solutions without excuses and the national experience and relationships to lead us into the future like never before.
Justin Tennant
Fayetteville