AS A NEW YEAR BEGINS

We would like to acknowledge and Thank everyone who has contributed in any way, to the many wonderful improvements made in Huntsville over the last year, as well as all the previous years efforts to maintain and preserve our Town. We were sorry to hear of the resignation of Jimmy McKay. Along with many others, he has served this Town over many years, has done a great job, and his services will be missed. In the past, volunteers performed much of the work of the Town. We now have around 28 part-time paid employees serving roughly 230 homes, with a population of 630 people. This serves to “spread the wealth” as a direct benefit to many of our Town residents. However, with our small population, many of our positions and appointments are held by some of the same citizens, sometimes creating conflicts of interest. Because the population will likely keep increasing to part-time and absentee property owners, this trend will continue with less people to fill town positions.
In comparison, Syracuse serves 5,000 with 5 full time employees, with several part-time positions open during the summers. Through the disruptions created by ongoing elections, and new appointment learning curves, many officials and citizenry everywhere, have recognized the need for more stability in City and Town services, by the use of a qualified full-time manager or maintenance person. The duties and assignments of our Mayor and Council are not clearly or permanently defined by statutes and have been subject to changes at will, over the years. This creates confusion and alienation of citizens trying to be part of the process. One person coordinating and performing maintenance work, and projects, operating directly under the Council has its drawbacks, but all these job assignments can shift, as in the loss of Jimmy McKay. It’s important that our elected and appointed officials steer a course in establishing continuity and stability within Town services. While changes are needed, as well as unavoidable, citizens living here may become a minority over time, and which may become a critical factor to keeping the character of Huntsville. As new ordinances are adopted, we hope the Council will come up with solutions to make our Town more efficient, co-hesive, and responsive to the needs of all citizens, for today and the future of Huntsville.