My letter to Mayor Waterman: "My sincere congratulations..."

Mayor Waterman:

Congratulations on your July 12th win.  As with all things, be careful what you wish for, you just might get it!  I hope that your term is successful and that the city benefits from your efforts.

I still question the wisdom of your predecessor, Mayor Varela, and the timing of his resignation.  In fact, I question his decision not to finish his term at all and believe that he truly misled the citizenry in his state of the city address last February - saying that even though he would not be running again, he would not quit and "run right through the finish line."  Well, so much for promises made by politicians.  As a result, we incurred the expense and effort of two elections, and you happened to come out on top.  It is my opinion that we would have experienced the same result, given the support you had from the majority of dais members. The only difference being that, had you been appointed, you would be in office without the explicit permission of the electorate.  Come November, you and your supporters would then have been in the position to defend your selection.  With your election, you can now go forward without that "baggage" - and this is a good thing if it is your intent to lead the city beyond this three month or so period to which you have been elected.

Unfortunately, we did not have the opportunity to really meet and talk before the election(s). We both share a background in community planning and economic development and I am sure that we would have a lot to talk about as it relates to Lake Worth.  Two days after the election, I left Lake Worth for a pre-scheduled vacation and missed your swearing-in ceremony.  If I had still been in town, I surely would have attended, taken pictures and included them in my blog - right side up this time - LOL.  I speak for myself, but I also believe for my blog's readers, in thanking you for your responses to their questions prior to the election.  The blog enjoys a significant and loyal following by people concerned with the future of Lake Worth and I am sure your answers helped determine their decision on who to vote for Mayor.

As I am sure you are aware, I did not support your campaign and chose instead to support Lisa Maxwell and then Tom Ramiccio in the run-off.  Lisa happens to be a long-standing friend and associate of mine - we served on the Planning, Zoning, Historic Resource Preservation Board together for a span of years.  She was also endorsed by the Palm Beach County Human Rights Council - which did not endorse you in the first election for some reason, why I am still not sure.  I did not agree with all of Ms. Maxwell's opinions and approaches, but thought that she was the best choice given the limited field of candidates.  As you know, ours is an imperfect system where the best candidates are sometimes those that are not on the ballot and we are left to choose from those that have made the sacrifices necessary to run a campaign and are committed to serve in an elected office.  Ms. Maxwell would have been a forceful and knowledgeable presence on the dais had she been chosen by the majority of the electorate to do so.

The same can be said for Tom Ramiccio had he been elected in the run-off election.  There are many in our community that share his strong stand in support of the business community and they should be listened to regardless of the result of the election.  My support of Tom was based upon what I perceive as a need for balance on the City Commission and what has turned out to be an "insular" decision-making process.  I am concerned that the Commissioners who supported your campaign do not always reflect the opinion of a broad section of our community, but represent a small interest group bent on pursuing a certain ideology instead of what is best for the future financial soundness and safety of the city.  This is what prevented me from supporting you in the recent elections.

That is not to say that I did not have reservations about Tom Ramiccio being Mayor again.  I had misgivings related to his style of leadership, some sources of his campaign funds and, simply, that to me he represented the past and not the future of Lake Worth.  We need fresh approaches to solve the problems that the city faces so that we can meet the future with a better place in which to live, work and play.  Not voting was also not an option for me - I am a super voter to the extreme.

So, now I face the following question: "When is it alright to suspend disbelief that you will not be a puppet figure of those that so strongly supported your campaign for Mayor?"  Will you be able to act independently based upon the information put before you?  People that supported your campaign have, in the past, done everything they could to make sure that I would not end up in a position where I would be making decisions as a representative of Lake Worth residents.  These actions included telling falsehoods and making personal attacks that I still hear about from friends that were approached by the same people who supported you in your campaign.  So, I ask again, when is it alright to suspend disbelief that you are any different from your supporters?

The main reason I am writing this letter to you is that I am willing to say that time is NOW.  I would like to meet with you to discuss this concern first and get your assurance that the time is indeed now and also talk about other concerns and problems related to the future of Lake Worth.  I am sure that we agree this is a critical time for the city and one that requires the harnessing of talents held by many residents that have been excluded, or feel that they have been excluded, in our process of local governance.

My schedule is likely more flexible than yours so I can meet based upon your availability.  Please get back to me with a time and we will set a date.  I would also like to apologize for anything that you might have found offensive in my blog during the campaign - either items that I posted or comments made by my readers.  I have a very open policy regarding what comments I allow and see a need to maintain that policy in order to encourage active and honest debate in our community.  

Thank your for your time taken in reading this letter and I look forward to hearing from you in the future.  I am more than ready to help with the tasks at hand.

Wes Blackman

Lake Worth Resident