Why Such Unrest?

Over the past many months I have given a great deal of thought as to why Hansville has become so divided. The speed tables are the issue that have brought to light the GHAAC, it's structure and conduct, and eventually the Greater Hansville Sign controversy. I believe that most of the hardworking volunteers who make up the GHAAC truely do not grasp why there are people in the community who do not agree with what they are doing or how they conduct their business. The following analogy may shed some light for them.

Once upon a time a group of volunteers got together in a small town called Hansville. They worked together and came up with a preferred future for their community. They got input from about 15% of the population and drew up a plan based on that input and their own analysis. One of their concerns was that the community was served by only two roads and thousands of people had to use those small roads to access their homes. They worked to have these roads improved and widened so that the majority of the towns population could have easier access. They know that the people living along those two roads might not be very happy, but they did live on collector distributor roads, and their inconvenience was a small price to pay for the betterment of the overall community.

The group working to have the roads widened and improved did have to be careful about how much information they let out about their project as they worked up their proposal. They had to manage public perception of the issues and they also had to garner the support of county officials. This was easy to do - they had a close relationship with their current commissioner, who was planning to leave office and therefore could afford to help them out and not be around later to suffer the political fallout.

They group prevailed and the road was widened. The neighbors who lived along it were caught off guard and could not believe that a small group of their fellow citizens could plan their future, alter the infra-structure of their town, and lower their quality of life all in an effort to maintain the "livability" of Hansville. To them the town was now less livable. One member of the group was even appointed county commissioner to replace the one who quit. This appointment made it difficult for those opposed to the road widening.

So the town became divided. Neighbors were mad at neighbors and a lack of respect and understanding prevailed in the town. Citizens who were spoke out against the community volunteers were branded as dissenters and their efforts to make sure the town was managed in a democratic fashion were branded as trouble making. They were now called "Hansvillains".

Policies and decisions about the real Hansville need to take everyone into account. The GHAAC needs to make sure everyone has a chance to be heard, and that communication between the GHAAC and the citizens it represents is truly two-way. When the GHAAC makes decisions, especially if they impact peoples daily lives, they need to take everyone's needs into account. If not, the citizens of Hansville will continued to be divided and the number of "Hansvillains" will continue to grow.