Thursday, July 16, 2009
Hannan / Politics Tony Giarratana Gets One Step Closer to a New May Town Vote
Posted by Caleb Hannan on Thu, Jul 16, 2009 at 6:46 AM
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Metro Planning Director Rick Bernhardt granted one half of developer Tony Giarratana's wish yesterday, agreeing to consider a petition to rehear a rezoning plan for May Town Center. Here's the relevant snippet of Bernhardt's letter to Giarratana, delivered yesterday afternoon:
In accordance with the adopted Rules and Procedures of the Metropolitan Planning Commission, your request has been reviewed by Chairman McLean and myself. Without making a final determination on the issue, we do not find at this time that the request is completely without merit.The funny thing about the italicized line above (italicized by us, not Bernhardt) is that that's the exact opposite conclusion most people (including the city's own lawyers) have come to. In order to get this new rehearing, Giarratana had to satisfy one of two conditions: Either something had changed since the first hearing, or there was new, previously unreleased information available. Because neither of these two Matlock scenarios fit, Giarratana instead couched his argument on the dubious presumption that the Commission members were too sleepy to think straight. Even though that's all a load of BS, we're now going back to have a vote on whether we should have another vote. And here's the fun part: Because it only failed by a whisper last time, the ridiculous circus that is May Town could get revived because of something hilariously mundane, like a dissenting voter getting caught up in a PTA meeting or rendered immobile by a flat tire. Isn't democracy grand?
Comments (3)
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Did you watch the vote unfold, Caleb? It was unorganized, convoluted and embarrassing.
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Posted by
Dingo
on July 16, 2009 at 10:03 AM
I watched the vote unfold and it reflected the ambivalence on the commission at one of the most authentic moments I've witnessed in Metro governance. And there should be ambivalence at selling the green, rural jewel of Bells Bend to the highest bidder. Developers should not assume that commissioners are going to be pocket votes when there is so much public outcry about their developments.
There is nothing more unorganized, convoluted, and embarrassing than the Planning Department's refusal to follow its own Community Character Manual in the Scottsboro/Bells Bend sub-area.
Posted by
S-townMike
on July 16, 2009 at 10:16 AM
