Opinion: Local Government Success a Joint Effort
Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer Opinion
This past week offers a shining example of why local politics can be so important. While national lawmakers are often frozen by fighting across (and sometimes within) party lines with few results, local government is more immediately responsive to the needs of and to protecting the character of our community.
Especially true when they work together for the common good.
A New York-based developer had submitted a plan to Anderson County to build a 249-unit mobile home site in and around the Town of Starr. The massive development would have had trailers on tightly packed lots which would be rented by the developer, not owned by those who pulled in their mobile homes to live there.
Anderson County Councilman Greg Elgin, who represents the district of the proposed development, responded to the proposal and put together a meeting of county officials and more than 300 local citizens at the Starr Fire Department on Tuesday to discuss the plan.
Elgin said that while lack of countywide zoning gave him little authority to prevent such a proposal, he personally was against it and believed it to be bad for the community.
He said he also met with the county water and sewer department which made it clear that there was no capacity for just a large housing complex, making it clear developers would be on the hook for a likely cost-prohibitive mass septic system, which would have allowed fewer lots due to the increased number of drain lines.
Anderson School Dist. 3 also showed up in force, with Superintendent Kathy Hipp and her entire board in attendance. Hipp said the proposal at hand would create chaos for her district, which is already at capacity in the classroom.
Starr Mayor Ed Sokol read the town’s current ordinance required that any mobile home must be situated on at least one acre, meaning a third of the land proposed for the trailer park could not be built, because it was located on land within the township.
Anderson County Administrator Rusty Burns fielded random questions and made it clear that the issue at hand was very far from a done deal and that there were so many obstacles he hinted such a plan was unlikely to be approved by the Planning and Development Board.
As part of the meeting Elgin encouraged citizens to attend the October Planning Commission Meeting, where the proposal was on the agenda, and make their wishes known during the public hearing.
Word must have traveled fast to the developers, because by Friday they had withdrawn their request for the project (at least for now) and it is no longer on any meeting agenda.
It’s a win for local government and citizen involvement in Anderson County. These mass trailer parks in other states have led to loud calls for regulation and rent control, as many trailer owners have had their mobile homes seized because of rapidly increasing rent prices, which are not subject to legal regulation.
As federal and state governments face gridlock due party infighting and lack of cooperative effort, it’s good to see local governments in Anderson County offer an example of how things should work.
Over the years, participation in local government by citizens has waned, even as rhetoric has seen a steep spike. Complaining on Facebook, instead of attending town and county council meetings and becoming informed on issues, has replaced active participation.
This week’s win protecting the community in and around the Town of Starr offers a better template moving forward.