On November 8, New Albany's municipal elections will provide a brief, hopeful respite from the general malaise, after which we can lapse yet again into profound depression. NAC is considering these options, with a council race each day through Saturday, at-large hopefuls on Sunday, and the future mayor on Monday, October 17. Listings are cribbed from the clerk's office, followed by brief comments by the senior editor.NEW ALBANY COUNCIL DISTRICT 5
(Precincts New Albany 9, 14, 15, 26, 28, 40)
R Tonye A. Rutherford 1680 Woodlawn Drive 812-945-6722
D Diane McCartin Benedetti 1343 Slate Run Road 812-989-7179
If you intend to use your birth name whenever possible so as to remind people you're a McCartin, that's fine, but then you probably should recognize that doing so rather obviously precludes you from voting on your brother's zoning needs of the moment. Legalistic protests aside, that's called a conflict of interest, and like Bob Caesar's sad pro-1Si votes, it has a way of never, ever leaving the collective memory.
By contrast, I've found Rutherford to be affable and earnest. Like most of the other GOP candidates, his innermost policy thoughts are unknown, but he has yet to parrot reactionary Republican social issue stances, and that's always a welcomed positive.
NAC's pick: Benedetti's view of governance hails from the strip-mall-in-a-cornfield model of sprawligarchy, so let's try some change for the hell of it: Rutherford in the 5th.
4 comments:
I agree with you 100% on this one. Not oly has Benedetti's sole mission been to further the McCartin real estate dynasty, but her contempt for taxpayers is manifested in her selfishly taking the city's insurance when she has the luxury of other options and let's not forget how she tried to use her public official position to avoid her arrest the night she had been drinking or driving late whatever the case may be.
The council should see the benedetti years as a reason to form an ethics committee because she surely is an example of unethical behavior.
Diane does the most "out of meeting" work of anyone on the council. She's usually prepared but I sometimes find it hard to follow her "logic" & conclusions.
I used to be in the Caesar conflict of interest camp but I left that a while back. Being just a member of 1SI shouldn't be considered anymore of a COI than someone who is just a member of the Y. I didn't come up with this, someone else did(Dan Chandler?)but it made sense to me.
Now, before I incur the wrath of EW for not staying on the current candidates, Diane's COI was clear cut. It was her brother. Every definition that I've read about COI states "immediate family" and that includes siblings. Her refusal to acknowledge that would make it difficult for me to vote for her if I lived in the 5th despite the considerable effort that she puts into Council work.
Benedetti's sole mission...
I briefly served with Ms. Benedetti on the Redevelopment Commission. There she was engaged, independent and responsive. I don’t think this was for show as her constituents and the press often weren’t in these meetings. None of her brother’s projects came before the commission during this time. I cannot defend her council votes on her brother’s projects, but to dismiss her contributions as nothing more than "further the McCartin real estate dynasty" is laughable.
That being said, I think I agree with EW that the council would do itself (and the city) some good with a clearer/stronger conflict of interest stance. The exact form it should take is open for debate.
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