This evening, Tuesday the 27th, 6-8 p.m., the Tennessee American Water Company will have a public meeting at the MACC. They are one of two companies interested in taking over the water system. We already buy our water from TAWC, but this would sell off the whole system.
The other company interested in it is Walden's Ridge. Again our Signal Mountain Town Council has not advertised this meeting. As with the re-zoning scheme, it seems that the Signal Mountain Town Council does not want citizen input. This decision is very important and Signal Mountain citizens need to come and ask questions.
American Water has been a major force behind the privatization of water services and has come under fire from communities across the country for charging high rates and providing poor services.
In 2013, American Water generated $2.9 billion in total operating revenue. Former CEO Jeffrey Sterba, who retired in 2014, made over $12 million in just four years as head of the company.
In 2011, Citigroup economist Willem Buiter predicted that "water as an asset class will, in my view, become eventually the single most important physical commodity-based asset class, dwarfing oil, copper, agricultural commodities and precious metals."
But some American cities are fighting this commodification of precious water resources and have engaged in successful campaigns to take back or "municipalize" public water utilities.
Davis Lundy, who used to head up The Moriah Group, a Chattanooga based PR firm, had American Water Company as a client during a very contentious and ugly battle during Mayor Jon Kinsey's administration. Mayor Kinsey wanted Chattanooga to get control of its own water, and Davis Lundy's firm on behalf of American Water Company (a German-based company in spite of its patriotic name) lodged a vicious and petty personal attack against Mayor Kinsey, misrepresenting his noble intentions in keeping local control of our water. American Water Company eventually won the battle and got control of Chattanooga's water. It has been a very bad deal for the citizens of Chattanooga and a good deal for American Water Company.
Signal Mountain Town Council member, Bill Wallace, used to work for Davis Lundy at the Moriah Group. Now, Signal Mountain Town Council wants to hire Davis Lundy for $20,000 as a lobbyist. Our town council was haggling over how to pay the SRO of the high school and we can afford to pay Bill Wallace's former boss $20,000?
Although Davis Lundy has not publicly lobbyied on behalf of American Water Company to get Signal Mountain to sell their water to this company, the fact that he is trying to become a paid lobbyist for our town, and the fact that he represented them in the past, and the fact that Bill Wallace, a Signal Mountain town council member, used to work directly for Davis Lundy seems like too many coincidences to go unnoticed. American Water Company in the past has tried to insinuate itself in local politics to get its way, as it did in its campaign against the Mayor of Chattanooga, Jon Kinsey, for all practical purposes ending his political career in Chattanooga. What is American Water Company up to now on Signal Mountain? Citizens need to come tonight and ask some serious questions.
There seems to be some unholy alliances developing in this water-buying scheme. It smells fishy to me.
Signal Mountain might be a small town, but it sure looks like Chicago politics.
Rachel Miller
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I asked Mr. Boyd Veal, Signal Mountain town manager, if he could send out an e-mail blast about the Tennessee American Water Co. meeting Tues., Oct. 27, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the MACC. He said the town cannot advertise for a potential bidder, which I understand.
The word about this meeting has just started to get out on NextDoor Neighbor, but this forum reaches a very limited number of people. The only notice I saw from Tennessee American was an ad almost a week ago in the Community News, that also has a limited audience. The ad says the "Signal Mountain community is invited to learn more about Tennessee American Water, your local water provider, at an informational meeting.” No mention of their interest in buying our system.
Few know as potential owners of our water system, Tennessee American presented a power point presentation to the council at one of the recent agenda meetings held at 12:30 on a Friday. Don’t know if they will make the same presentation tonight. If few citizens show up at the MACC, I think it will send the message to the council and water company that there is no interest in who owns our water system. However, a one-week-old ad that doesn’t mention that Tennessee American Water is in the process of preparing a bid to buy our water system, will probably guarantee very few participants at their “informational meeting.” Makes one think Tennessee American does not really want input from the public.
Claire Griesinger