The Cost of Indecision

Opinion

By Charlie Paris

One of the most interesting – and factual – quotes that I have ever read came from a children’s book; Alice In Wonderland.

One day Alice came to a fork in the road and saw a Cheshire cat in a tree.

‘Which road do I take?’ she asked. His response was a question: ‘Where do you want to go?’ ‘I don’t know,’ Alice answered. ‘Then,’ said the cat, ‘it doesn’t matter.’Sound familiar? One of the greatest problems we face in Gilmer County seems to be that we don’t know where we want to go. It naturally follows that, since we don’t know where we want to go, we can’t make plans for getting there.

While planning is an essential part of any successful endeavor, there must be an end goal in mind. Instead, our county government seems to live day to day – reacting only to the extent necessary to get past whatever issues may arise. The result is a government paralyzed by indecision and based on the concept that things would improve if only we all would just wish for it a little harder.

This is why it took us two years and an eviction notice to react to the Cherry Log Fire Station issue. It is clear from the lease that the new property owner had the right to ask the County to move the Fire Station. They sent us notification of their decision, but we didn’t know how to respond; so we didn’t. We just ignored the problem until it became a crisis that cost us additional dollars in legal fees.

It’s also why we missed the opportunity to lower our debt by over 1.5 Million Dollars. The County was presented with an option to refinance our bonds at a savings of over one and a half million dollars. We could attain such savings because interest rates had dropped to the lowest level in modern history; but we wanted to wait. Many people argued passionately for accepting the savings, pointing out that interest rates were at a record low, and it was likely that they would start climbing again. As we know, rates did begin to increase – but we still had the opportunity to save close to a million dollars, even at the higher rate. We just couldn’t make a decision – and rates continued to climb. As interest rates continued to increase – and potential savings continued to decrease – other opportunities were lost due to our inability to make a decision, and now there are no worthwhile savings to be had.

A prime example of our indecision is the 4 years we’ve spent working on what should have been a 6 month project – the Clear Creek Ball Fields. I’ve attended many BOC meetings where the ball fields were discussed, and have asked many times for a summary of work remaining to be done – along with cost estimates for finishing the work. No one seems to have an answer to that question, but it is interesting to note that any such discussion inevitably stalls on the issue of how large we want the fields to be – usually within 10 minutes of the start of any conversation regarding the ball fields. We want four 300 ft. fields, but that is deemed to be too expensive. As an alternative, we have settled for two 300 ft. fields and two 250 ft. fields, but since that is not what we really want it becomes a debate – all over again; and again; and again. Once the conversation turns to the size of the ball fields, nothing else of any value is discussed. Our inability to make a decision – on field size, lighting, concession stand, and other items – has become a major factor in the delay in completing the fields.

Now, the County has taken over operation of the Golf Course, and we can’t decide what to do with it. Should we put it up for bid and find a new lessee, or should we run it ourselves? We can’t decide, so by default it looks as if we will be running it ourselves for the foreseeable future. The situation is much the same for the airport.

Our incredible debt was the result of an effort to prepare for the rapid growth that we were experiencing in Gilmer County. We were, in fact, one of the fastest growing counties in the nation. The problem is that no one foresaw the bust that was coming, and when it came we were completely unprepared for it.

The SPLOST funds that were supposed to accommodate the massive debt began to decline as visitation to the county slowed significantly. Related to that, the Real Estate and New Home Construction industries suffered as fewer and fewer people made the decision to relocate or retire to Gilmer. As our tax base spiraled downward, our millage rates began to climb. We had no money and no prospects, other than raising property taxes.

We certainly did not find ourselves in a unique position. Many, if not most, of the counties in Georgia and other states were in the same predicament. What makes us a bit different, however, is that we have done nothing about it. We complain – a lot – that the economy has dealt us a serious blow, but we have not done a single thing, as a county government, to adapt to the new situation and find ways to thrive in this environment. Our Chamber of Commerce is doing a good job of promoting our County, but they can’t do it alone. Once again, our indecision is hurting us.

Since I started with a favorite quote, I would like to end with another. I first heard this attributed to President Theodore Roosevelt, but have found that it is older than that – and the source seems to be in question.

“In any moment of decision the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.”

That’s not universally true, of course, but it’s a pretty good general guideline. Nobody wants to do the wrong thing, but attempting to avoid it by doing absolutely nothing at all is seldom a viable alternative.

Charlie Paris

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