THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, March 3, 1996 TAG: 9603040174
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 06 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: Long : 132 lines
I read with interest your ``objective'' news article regarding Bill Ward running again for mayor of Chesapeake.
Your ``objective'' reporting stated Ward was against the removal of the ``popular'' former city manager. Perhaps you should have maintained your high level of ``objective'' reporting to explain whom the fired city manager was popular with.
Yes, it is true that the fired city manager should have been held in high esteem by those who used to work in the City Garage who stole equipment and money under his watchful eye. You do remember that, don't you? You wrote about it for weeks.
He also would have been very popular with those who now are no longer with the Inspection Department. In that area, where open vice and bribery were the rule of the day under his leadership until reformers on City Council challenged his lack of ethics and forced the halt to $50 bills showing up on the trucks of look-the-other-way inspectors.
He would have also been very popular with Sanitation Department employees who got paper overtime as long as they split the difference with their bosses.
And, of course, the former members of the Chesapeake Redevelopment and Housing Authority loved him, too. They were removed by City Council against the advice of both Mr. Ward and the first city manager for their questionable travel when low-income people were forced to live in Third World conditions. Yes, the fired city manager was popular by signing the checks for the late-night drinking parties by the then-members of the Redevelopment and Housing Authority.
Thank goodness, the current City Council learned quickly enough of the lack of leadership of the former city manager and acted to protect us from his kind. I just hope we have all learned a lesson, and we can see that Mr. Ward knew about all these things, too.
Laurie Brady
Lawrance Drive Star attraction
Surely all residents of our city are proud of the Chesapeake Planetarium on Cedar Road, but did you know that on Page 46 of the 1996 Virginia Travel Guide, it is the only attraction listed for our city?
Linda Batten Kindness appreciated
Kinglet AvenueI want to thank the person (unknown to me, but known to God) who turned in my lost purse on February 19 at Montgomery Ward store at Chesapeake Square Mall.
We hear and read so many stories of violent deeds done one to another these days that I needed to bring this to light.
We just moved to Chesapeake seven months ago and have found very friendly and kind people here in the Tidewater area.
Ellen M. Parks
Devon Drive A matter of taste
I couldn't wait to draw a sample of this ``better' drinking water Tony Stein reported in last week's Clipper. It has been a week now, and I'm still sampling, hoping for a taste worth writing home about. Hoping also that this water having, presumably, made its way to his house might now be on its way to ours. Here is my report.
In the case of Chesapeake's drinking water, ``better'' is a state of mind. As a matter of fact, it might be described as mind over matter. This is my conclusion when statistics instead of taste are used to define what is or is not ``better'' drinking water.
If taste is the basis for judging, it is clear our water is still not fit to drink. Worse luck, it has lost some of the astringent quality that made it suitable for use as mouthwash.
Ernest F. Brede
Gibson Drive Witch hunting
This is to express my disappointment with the way several highly respected city officials are being treated. The three persons are Police Capt. Billy Spruill (whom I have known for more than 18 years), City Council Member John W. Butt and Capt. William Brickhouse of the Sheriff's Department.
My husband and I have seven children, and we are very aware of the problems that can develop while raising children. Nevertheless, the actions of children should not be used to ruin the reputation of their parents.
In this case, it appears that the Chesapeake City Council has nothing better to do than turn a judicial matter into a public display of witch hunting. Even if there is some blame on the news media for misstating the facts then, the City Council should quickly put the matter to rest rather than drag these respected families through a nightmarish public review of private family business. It simply is wrong and a waste of taxpayers' money.
As a 15-year resident of Great Bridge, I am concerned that the City Council may have chosen to be involved in this matter for less than honorable reasons. If I have this perception, I must assume that others do, too. Even if it is not true, it gives the general public and especially the citizens of Chesapeake, a feeling that the council is not capable of managing the city. It also discredits the hard work of many loyal employees and has a major negative effect on morale.
I respectfully request that this current fiasco be quickly brought to an end with proper apologies made to the families who have served the city for years.
Linda LaMastra Myers Acting with restraint
I was surprised and displeased to see a letter in the Feb. 25 edition of The Clipper depicting possible improprieties in a theft investigation involving the sons of respected Chesapeake officials as some sort of partisan witch hunt or maneuvering. This is the first suggestion I have seen that the independent investigation into this matter is anything other than propriety in the extreme.
Both city officials and the media alike have acted with appropriate restraint. Unlike past scandals, there have been no public firings and no reported temper tantrums in the corridors of City Hall. Indeed, in keeping with the mayor's request, I have heard no comments from any City Council members on the matter.
Commonwealth's Attorney David L. Williams, recognizing the inherent conflict of interest of his partisan elected office investigating allegations of cover-up and tip-offs, properly turned the matter over to independent investigators. Nobody in the city of Chesapeake has been impugned by anybody at this stage, excepting of course the railing of your letter writer against the original victim in this matter, Vice Mayor Robert T. Nance Jr.
Unlike the previous letter writer, I see the maturation of Chesapeake politics in this latest travail. Things are being handled through proper channels, off the front pages of the newspaper, without the charges and counter-charges of city officials. I am proud of the way our elected officials have handled this unfortunate episode. We citizens must exercise similar restraint if we hope to erase Chesapeake's tarnished reputation once and for all.
Philip J. Infantino
Blair Court by CNB