It’s a sad day for Hamilton County taxpayers. Last week, Mr. Fred Skillern used his position as chairman to stop Mayor Coppinger from making his recommendation for building new schools and asked commissioners to meet privately with Mayor Coppinger and discuss which schools will be funded in the capital budget. Why? According to various media reports, Skillern said he “didn't want to sit there all day... Why have discussions without figures?”
It’s a shame that Mr. Skillern doesn’t have time for this critical discussion just like he didn’t have time to attend a recent joint meeting between County Commissioners and School Board members where they discussed this very information at length. As a District 1 candidate for the County Commission, I actually attended this meeting and listened to all parties discuss the budget figures and the need to build up to six new schools. Unfortunately, Mr. Skillern made a different decision.
Yes, the mayor is right in not disclosing specific budget information on school construction as it will limit his ability to secure a competitive cost to building these new schools. This is why I believe Mr. Skillern is being disingenuous by using Mayor Coppinger’s position as reason to push this critical discussion behind closed doors and outside of the public view. The public has a right and expectation to be included in this discussion, especially since it affects the educational outcomes of our children.
I decided to run for the District 1 seat on the County Commission because our community, especially parents of school-age children, deserve to have an elected leader that understands the importance of engaging the public when making critical decisions that directly affect them.
District 1 deserves to have a representative that wants to engage them, listen to their concerns and hear their feedback when making critical decisions rather than discuss issues and make decisions behind closed doors. This is what representative government means, and this is why I’m running to represent District 1 on the Hamilton County Commission.
If you agree, I ask for your support and vote in the Republican Primary on May 6.
Randy Fairbanks
Republican Candidate, District 1
Hamilton County Commission