Power change sweeps council

The News Virginian
Published: May 6, 2008

The product of an intense campaign that culminated with Tuesday’s election is a shift in power on the Waynesboro City Council. One thing has not changed: Factions and the dread terms, majority and minority, remain entrenched in City Hall lingo.
Frank Lucente, the incumbent at-large councilman, and his ideological ally, Ward B candidate Bruce Allen, swept the contested races. They will team with Councilman Tim Williams to form a new majority. Thus ends weeks of both factions sparring with foes over trivialities while awaiting the election to sort out the politics.
Principally, the change places in control a majority trio who trumpet their fiscal conservatism against the ostensible expansionism of the minority pairing of Vice Mayor Nancy Dowdy and Councilwoman Lorie Smith.
Restraint in spending is badly needed in modern government, especially in the centralized realms of Washington and Richmond. The common-sense approach of Lucente and his council compatriots should ensure efficiency in city operations.
What it should not ensure is continuing stagnancy in the city’s ailing downtown. Progress is a term that has been snatched away by those of expansionist bent. It is possible, and necessary for communities that desire growth, to revitalize city cores without emptying government bank accounts and taxpayer pockets.
Toward that end, we encourage the council’s new power bloc to continually insist on counting the costs while not only remaining open to opportunities for public-private partnerships, but aggressively pursuing them. Tax breaks to spur development, such as those approved for the Town Center and those discussed for a potential baseball stadium, could be just what is needed to bring downtown to life.
Further, spirited debate on how to make things happen would be a helpful, healthy component of the process. This will require that the minority be at least heard if not always heeded.
Contrary to the favored rhetoric of politicians, victories on Election Day seldom represent mandates of the absolute nature some suggest. What they do represent is a mandate to take the mantle of leadership and act in a way that benefits the larger community.
That, we believe, is precisely what the voters had in mind when they went to the polls. Those elected to represent the people should demonstrate like thinking, which could serve as the fuel for a newly energized Waynesboro. Let progress begin.