Being On Watkinsville City Council
I don’t often talk about being on Watkinsville City Council. Some of this stems from the unglamorous and mundane details that being a City Councilor entails - storm water, variance requests, audit reports. I also never want to appear like I want accolades or applause. But, I do want to let people know about the exciting things happening in Watkinsville. It’s also important to let clients know the value that city council experience brings as I help you find the right home for you.
I’m in my 7th year of serving and it has been a bit of a roller coaster with 5 different mayors, the hiring of our first ever city manager, the firing of our Police Chief and restructuring of our whole police department, three major development agreements for Wire Park, Trove, and Wisteria Ridge, keeping the library in the city limits of Watkinsville, partnering with ESP to build the Playground of Possibilities and the Miracle League Ball Field, revitalization of Harris Shoals Park and Rocket Field, rebranding with new signs, an extensive transportation plan, updating our codes, activating our DDA (Downtown Development Authority) and chairing our DDA to name a few.
I’m privileged to get to partner with great leaders in our community and amazing nonprofits like ESP and OCAF. So many of the citizens of Watkinsville are actively engaged in making our community vibrant and inclusive. I have learned so much and am constantly learning more about how finance works in a city, how to balance individual needs with the goals for the whole community, how to work with people who have completely different ideas on how to go about doing anything, how to collaborate with other government agencies and nonprofits.
Being on City Council and being Mayor Pro Tem (meaning if the mayor is unavailable then I step in and am temporary mayor) is a large time commitment. This month I will be spending the equivalent of 6 working days doing city council business. Suffice to say, my little stipend works out to way less than minimum wage. Through some particularly challenging times a few years ago, my family (rightfully) challenged me as to why I was going to run for office again. We should always be asking ourselves why we do anything that takes up a huge chunk of our time as a volunteer. So why do I continue to serve on City Council?
This is a pivotal moment in the city of Watkinsville. After nearly ten years of stagnate growth, we are poised to almost double our population. Despite some long term residents understandably wishing we could always stay the same size, private property rights demand that growth is happening. The key is doing whatever we can do through our little local government to make sure that we follow the “Watkinsville Way” - that we will be a connected community honoring our history while welcoming innovation and accommodating change and that we will provide opportunities for all. I am privileged to get to be a part of the decision-making process that will directly impact our small community. I love brainstorming sessions where a room of smart people from different backgrounds collaborate and come up with better ideas that any one person could every conceive.
We moved to Watkinsville because of the great Oconee County School system, but we choose to live in the city limits because we wanted that connected small town community. I can easily walk to twelve different restaurants, a coffee shop, bakery, and brewery and chat with people I know every time. There is a regular influx of help whether it be with a home repair, or advice on a good local doctor, or a meal for someone in need. When my kids were in late elementary school, I felt safe for them to walk into town with friends to get a treat at Jittery Joes or a biscuit at Golden Pantry. We have multiple parks within walking distance with more coming. Keeping a vibrant community takes behind the scenes work to make sure there are sidewalks (and the money for them) to get you to those great restaurants. You need proper codes and enforcement in place to help all neighbors continue to be neighborly. You need active engagement with business owners to ensure they stay in the community. You need to have reasonable expectations for developers to make sure their developments to benefit the whole community.
As I travel and enjoy other towns nearby and even in other countries, I have a new appreciation for the work that has gone into making these communities a destination. Being on Watkinsville City Council inspires me to dig deep into what makes any town or city a great place to live. Although I would sure like to try, I know that Watkinsville can’t be everyone’s home. However, I’ll continue to work for Watkinsville to be a place where even people just driving through to want to stay a bit and experience our amazing town.
