Members of the City Council, I read The Citizen on a weekly basis to keep up with what is going on in Peachtree City. I am writing to you to express my concern about the events leading up to the recent split vote granting employees of PTC pay raises.
I never attended a city council meeting and I was never involved in any PTC activity mainly due to work, family and other commitments. After reading The Citizen, I feel I must voice my dissatisfaction on the decision of the three members who voted yes for the pay raises and the PTC city manager.
Similar to other citizens complaints, why wasn’t citizen representation not involved in the committee to chose the firm who will conduct the pay survey?
[City Manager James] Pennington’s statement saying there was no conflict of interest for employees picking the firm who will do a study on their behalf is mind-boggling. Who does Mr. Pennington work for?The three council members voting YES without looking at the study reminds me of Nancy Pelosi telling the American public to vote yes on Obamacare if they want to see what is in it. No wonder our health insurance premiums are skyrocketing and the majority of Americans are dissatisfied with Obamacare. The politicians with the same mentality are now part of the PTC Council.
Unlike the federal government, which can run budget deficits, the city cannot run a budget deficit. Voting YES without having a plan in place to pay for the pay increase is irresponsible and the council just did this.
If the federal government increased the cost of living allowance for Social Security beneficiaries starting in 2015 to 1.7 percent, how did the firm determine double-digit pay increases proposed in the study as appropriate? Why are we competing with other municipalities?
Where is the passion from the council members who voted YES to address the services requested by citizens? Did anyone drive our golf paths and see the conditions of some of our roads? Why wasn’t a same-day vote done on a traffic study which cost $40,000?
How does Mr. Pennington plan to get the citizens who he works for to buy into them footing this large bill? Is it solid contemporary management to not allow the citizens to determine who is going to perform the study and to determine if PTC wages are competitive to other municipalities?
Mr. Pennington, please bring back classic management practices.
Citizens need to become more involved and quickly and hold the council members who voted yes accountable to their actions. The future of our city is at stake.
When citizens like Barry who live in PTC are considering packing their bags and leaving the city and when city employees, the majority of whom do not live in the city, are allowed to enrich themselves at the expense of the taxpayers, this will be the beginning of the decline of this great city.
Look at the council members and mayor elected to their post. One is a former city employee for 20 years. Where is his allegiance — the taxpayer or the city employees?
Look at the three members of the council who voted Yes. The next time the city employees come to the city council meeting with their next demand at taxpayers’ expense, are they capable of saying we will look at your request or say NO?
Please, City Council, do not spend our money without first looking at the results of any study and then carefully considering the merit of a study or proposal. Voting before looking at the details of the study starts questioning the capability of your ability to perform the duty you signed up for.
Nina Ross
Peachtree City, Ga.
