Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009

State of Denial

Devastation and loss were not all the April wildfires brought to the city of North Myrtle Beach; they also exposed deep and troubling issues in the city government.

Prior to the fires, we always regarded the city as one of the reliable examples of good local governance. Its elected officials seemed bright and capable; its political structures seemed organized toward fairness, and complaints about the city were generally few.

That all changed in April. Experts and officials generally agree that the wildfire behaved in extraordinary ways before destroying more than 70 homes in Barefoot Resort, defying reasonable predictions because of weather and its own intensity. We believe the firefighters risking their lives did everything in their power to stop it. Our concern, however, is how little was done to warn the residents whose homes were destroyed without warning minutes after they escaped - and city officials' failure to admit afterward that it was a mistake.

Questions posed by us and others were met by an unsettling combination of misinformation and wagon-circling by North Myrtle Beach officials, a pattern that only intensified as the questions mounted. Any suggestion of shortcomings was met by defiance and dissembling, and soon a city government that had once seemed a model for cooperation began to look like an uncomfortably insular place. As if to seal our frustrations, the city soon passed a much more restrictive public-information policy, creating new fines and firewalls around information in a tactic that seemed solely devised to quell requests. Even the nonpartisan S.C. Policy Council took note.

Thus, we strongly anticipated this year's council elections as an opportunity to shake up a city government that appeared to be marching in lockstep. Unfortunately, we've been let down.

At-large councilmen Bob Cavanaugh and Terry White are running unopposed. Windy Hill Councilman Greg Duckworth has one opponent, James Robertson, whose passion for city politics is overwhelmed by his strident tone.

Mayor Marilyn Hatley, around whom much of the city's protectionist stance seems oriented, has three challengers. One, Gary Stephens, seems upright and well-intentioned, but not nearly knowledgeable enough to lead the city. Two others, Gene Sheppard and Dawn Lampen, have little record in the public eye and declined requests to meet with the editorial board, giving us little basis to recommend them. All three have run lackluster campaigns.

Accordingly, we feel uncomfortable recommending any of the candidates in the mayor's race. In her interview with us, Hatley spoke confidently and intelligently about her plans for the city, and on the basis of her words alone we considered recommending her. However, her insistence that the city made no missteps in the wildfire suggests to us that nothing has been learned, and that the insularity in her administration will continue.

In the Windy Hill district, Duckworth shares that same troubling perspective and described to us his commitment to "teamwork" on the council. However, he strikes us as an independent thinker, and we hope he will soon realize the current council has taken the teamwork concept too far, perhaps at citizens' expense.

Our hope had been that this election would bring change to North Myrtle Beach. Without any strong challengers on the horizon, however, we will simply continue to advocate for transparency and hope that change comes from within.

Do your part

Why are we telling you how to vote? We're not. Civics is hard work, and we hope the opinions of The Sun News editorial board will be only one of many sources you consult as you decide. Perhaps we've brought up ideas you hadn't thought of, or perhaps we've praised the very things you like least about these candidates. In the end, we're sharing our ideas as just one more perspective to consider as you head to the polls Tuesday.