Wilkerson says no vote reflected wish of his constituents

BY BROOKS TAYLOR

Mt. Pleasant News

MT. UNION ? City Councilman Randy Wilkerson says he was representing the wishes of his constituents when he cast the lone ?nay? vote Tuesday night on the unincorporation of Mt. Union.

?The reason I voted no is because a lot of people I talked to want to keep the city, and I was representing them,? Wilkerson told The News this morning. ?They felt the city council hadn?t done its job by not assessing taxes against those who weren?t paying their (sewer) bill. The people are fed up with the way the council protected themselves from not paying their sewer bill.?

Wilkerson speculated that there would be a petition filed, requesting a special election on whether Mt. Union should unincorporate.

?I am sure there will be a petition,? he remarked. ?That is their right. They should use their right to demand a vote. Yes, it will cost the city (money), but I feel people should have a vote.?

The first-year councilman said he hosted a recent meeting on the topic of unincorporation and most of the people who came opposed it. However, he said he thought that residents would choose unincorporation in a special election. The election requires a simple majority vote ? either for unincorporation or remaining a community.

?Things are not going to be the same (if the city unincorporates),? Wilkerson maintained. ?I doubt whether we would have early snow removal in the winter because the county will do it when they have time to do it. I don?t think there will be as many street lights, and people could have to haul their garbage to a collection point. I just think there will be a lot of changes.?

Wilkerson says he would ?hate? to see the community unincorporated, especially due to financial reasons that could have been avoided.

?The council and previous council got us into debt and now they are taking the easy way out,? he claimed. ?They used the city?s money to protect themselves so they wouldn?t have to pay their sewer bills. There are some hard feelings about that and it will take a while to get over it.?

A petition calling for a special election on unincorporation must be filed with the city council within 30 days. The council must accept the petition.