But the article prompted me to follow up on something that happened at the last SHCA meeting. It was when Al Krigman raised his motion to have the SHCA rescind its HD application, with an eye towards going for a Neighborhood Conservation District instead. The motion was efficiently tabled. However, the SHCA people mentioned that they'd send out a poll to their membership regarding this action at Al's prompting at a previous meeting.
Both Al and Tony West objected that this poll was sent along with a large amount of "pro" material, with no material outlining the objections to the proposal-- thus rendering the poll more than a little biased. Barry Grossbach replied that this was a statement of the SHCA board, explaining its reasons. True enough, but Barry's comment had no real bearing on the issue of bias in the poll.
Now, Al's an excitable guy, and I've learned how reliable Barry's statements are. But Tony West has usually been a voice of reason, and if he raised an objection, then it was worth taking seriously. I made a note to find this poll and see what was what.
The envelope contained three sheets of paper. The first was a simple Yes/No ballot. The second was the SHCA's "FAQ" about Historic District issues-- written by advocates of the proposal. The third was a lengthy statement from Nancy Roth which is, well, more than a little problematic. Frankly, both Tony and Al were right: this isn't so much a "poll" as it is an effort to lobby the SHCA membership to support the proposal, and to avoid any substantive debate about it.
Nancy writes that "while there has been some local opposition... we believe it is a small minority that reflects neither the majority of neighborhood residents nor our membership. Some of the misinformation this minority has promoted is addressed in the enclosed... information sheet." Never mind the evidence for such claims; Nancy is basically saying that those who'd vote "No" on the ballot are inconsequential, not worth taking seriously, and purveyors of misinformation. (Nancy, since I've written a great deal of the material critical of the HD, I 'd appreciate that you document your accusations of "misinformation.")
Also surprising re Nancy's stated reasons for conducting the poll. She writes that "Rather than ask our members to attend yet another meeting on the process, we have decided to poll the entire membership by mail." Well, why _not_ have another meeting? I think the answer's obvious. At a meeting, opponents might actually _speak_ and _be heard by the membership_. A poll, on the other hand, can be _managed_-- for example, including a letter explaining that critics of the HD are rogues and liars, to make sure that the recipients know what to reply.
In summary, this poll is a shameful, dishonest piece of work. It was presented and designed to get only one response on a fairly controversial topic. I mean, how hard would it have been to ask the critics for a one-page statement against the HD, even if to present a semblance of a debate? Not very. One wonders _why_such tactics were used, if Nancy, Barry, or anyone else at the SHCA was confident that the poll would go their way.
Friends, neighbors, and comrades, I'd like to make something very clear. I got involved in this HD debate because I'm very concerned about the prospect that the HD'd be a means for local "community leaders" to engage in strongarm tactics against homeowners. And in the two or three years since I've started getting involved in community affairs, I've had some good experiences and bad experiences. The good experiences have come through working with neighbors on such things as web sites, tree plantings, the Clark Park Festival, and even talking HD stuff with people. But occasionally, I've had some truly ugly experiences, and with few exceptions, those experiences have been with officers of the Spruce Hill Community Association.
I mean, what _is_ it about this organization that brings out the worst in people, and seems to promote the worst to its highest offices?
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