AJC > Sandy Springs > Blog > Archives > 2008 > August > 25 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USBroken promises on Sandy Springs
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Good morning boys and girls! Today Sesame Street is taking a road trip to the city of Sandy Springs. This isn’t like the road trips daddy used to take in college when he went to spring break, drank too much foamy soda and lost his pants. Funny daddy!
No this trip will be about learning how government operates, and letter today will be “I.” Now if you play Little League or peewee soccer your coach has probably told you there is no “I” in team. But there are two of them in politics.
Now three years ago, when some of you were just little babies, your mommy and daddy and a lot of other grownups voted for Sandy Springs to become its own city. Then they voted for people to represent them on the city council. Those people, who are called politicians, promised to protect the integrity of the neighborhoods around the city.
Now when mommy and daddy promise something, you know they really mean it. But when a politician promises something, it’s like when grownups say “we’ll see” and you know that can mean anything.
Last week the Sandy Springs City Council had to decide if Holy Spirit Preparatory School could build an athletic complex right next to neighborhood. The grownups in the neighborhood let the city council know they did not want this, and they expected the council to look out for their interests.
The city’s own planning staff - some very smart grownups who went to big-kid school to learn how to evaluate the impact of things like dropping a sports complex into a neighborhood — told the council they should vote it down.
So what did the council, who promised to look out for the neighborhoods, do? They voted 4-2 to allow the school to build its field. If this does not make sense to you, boys and girls, don’t feel bad. There are a lot of grownups who don’t understand and they are using their outside voices to complain and saying words that would get you a full month of time out.
It looks like some promises got broken. And you know how serious that can be. If you don’t understand this, it would be like if mommy and daddy let kitty guard the parakeet, if kitty promised not to have the parakeet for lunch. Then an hour later they came back and kitty had a full stomach and there was no more parakeet. Kitty would have broken his promise, but it would be too late. Bad kitty!
One of the politicians that ignored the city’s planning staff and all the people who live near the property in question, and voted to let the school build their field, said this was a “win for our city.” This is called spin, boys and girls. They call it spin because if you listen to the words and try to find the logic you get all dizzy and feel like you’re going to throw up.
Well, that’s all the time we have for today boys and girls. But next month the city council will get another chance to look out for the integrity of a neighborhood. The Epstein School wants to expand its campus but the people living around it don’t want them to. And they have sent letters and e-mails and petitions to the city council members asking them to vote against letting the school get bigger.
I’m sure mommy and daddy do not want you to gamble since you’re so young, but I wouldn’t bet my allowance that integrity of the neighborhood is going to win.
Permalink | Comments (9) | Post your comment | Categories: Jim Osterman
Comments
By Oliver Porter
August 26, 2008 9:00 AM | Link to this
Mr. Osterman incorrectly states the “promise” of Sandy Springs. It was not that every neighborhood would get its desires. Rather, it was that all citizens would get a fair and thoughtful hearing. This was never the case under Fulton county.
I have no opinion on the Holy Spirit case, but it does appear that the proponents on both sides had ample opportunity to present their cases and that there were multiple levels of consideration before a decision had to be made. That was the “promise” of Sandy Springs.
By dj
August 26, 2008 12:28 PM | Link to this
I get so tired of hearing people CRY about new development in the City of Sandy Springs. Guess what folks if you don’t like it MOVE! All over metro Atlanta we see new development. Do we want to keep traveling to spend our money?? or do we want to have place right here at home in the Springs to shop and spend our money? Get a clue and stopping CRYING!!!!
By Ed J
August 27, 2008 2:58 PM | Link to this
Jim, your comments are extremely appropriate. In the case of Holy Sprit, the planning committee even objected to the construction of the field and yet the council still voted in favor of it. This makes little sense since the neighborhoods were also generally against this. Now, I fear the same thing will happen with Epstein.
I personally don’t want to see Sandy Springs turn into nothing but strip malls, parking lots, and large buildings My hope is that the council will start to consider smart growth. At this point, I am not sure they are thinking this way.
By gttim
August 28, 2008 1:19 PM | Link to this
I have to say, I think this is good use for some rather crappy property. It is overgrown with kudzu, borders 285 and have been sitting vacant for a long time. Its parking will be mostly hidden from view, the bleachers only sit 400 people, and it is going to be used by a rather small, exclusive school. Do the nearby residents think this will make more noise or annoyance than 285? The residents had years to buy this property if they did not want anything built there.
That being said, I don’t know why you would expect elected officials to listen to concerns of residents. Most local elected officials, anywhere, are in the pockets of developers and local businesses. That is the constituency they truly represent and support.
By Ryan Ward
August 28, 2008 10:05 PM | Link to this
I have to say - this was a really poor post. I’m not sure what you were going for, but, sour grapes comes to mind. Holy Spirit is a good school and good schools support good neighborhoods because they attract MORE good residents.
As to the land itself…nowhere in here to you offer any solutions, just complaints because they decided to do something different than you seem to want. It’s not like there were 12 companies vying for it.
Do you have any thoghts on WHY you think it was a bad thing? or just that the immediate surrounding neighbors will be put out for the good of the whole?
By Tom Osterman (yep)
August 29, 2008 12:07 AM | Link to this
My advice: get the names of who voted which way; come election time, vote the bums who made you mad out of office.
To repeat: keep tabs on who did what, and let this guide you at the polling booth next election. And it wouldn’t hurt to get in touch with like-minded folk.
And whatever you do, DON’T wait for the League of Women Voters’ election guide the Thursday before. This is local politics, people, so your city fathers shouldn’t be that hard to watch!
By Common Sense
August 29, 2008 3:28 PM | Link to this
If you want to control the property then BUY the property. Seems simple enough.
By Lewis
August 29, 2008 4:03 PM | Link to this
Rumors have circulated for sometime that zoning votes are not on the up-and-up in Sandy Springs. Two Council members from the north districts need to be closely watched based on their votes.
By Paul Pasier
November 11, 2008 12:20 PM | Link to this
Question Representatives???
As a resident of Sandy Springs, I wish we had a representative in the AJC who didn’t write like a whiney little girl. We live in a border urban area, and it’s growth will be dynamic.
Mr Osterman, seems to look for opportunity to protect us from the big bad wolf. Many of us are self-made people, and all of us don’t need Mr Osterman to define what we should make us angry.
We each have our own vision of Sandy Springs. As for me, I want more of a cosmopolitan feel. I want energy - I don’t mean gas - I mean people energy, I want positive moving forward attitude.
Whether that comes about, only time will tell. But Mr Osterman’s tone and whiney messages send out some real negative depressing energy that doesn’t fit with the city one bit.
I am embarassed that Mr Ostterman somehow implies that he represents the people’s voice of the city - we are not whiney babies disappointed in our city.
There are some great things happening and Mr Osterman has taken a traditional media approach of complaining about everything, and acting like he is looking out for the little man, and just acting weak.
Most of us in Sandy Springs can take care of ourselves, let’s find an AJC “representative” with a positive uplifting message about Sandy Springs!