Sunday, October 28, 2007
Editorial: Three for Montgomery County
A sheriff, a supervisor and a school board member.
From the RoundTable blog
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Voters in Montgomery County will find a crowded ballot when they vote Nov. 6. We interviewed candidates in three of the highest-profile races and recommend an incumbent, a challenger and a write-in.
Sheriff
Over 30 years, Tommy Whitt rose through the ranks of local law enforcement, first with the Christiansburg Police Department and then the Montgomery County Sheriff's Department. He reached the pinnacle in 2003 when voters elected him sheriff. He has earned another four years.
During his first term, he oversaw the department's reaccreditation and the installation of a new radio system. He also tackled a poor retention rate by increasing salaries and improving the work environment. He now reports 98 percent retention.
Whitt led the department through some very difficult times: first the death of a deputy when William Morva escaped and then the April shootings at Virginia Tech.
Some people have called the Morva incident a failure by Whitt. On the contrary, he demonstrated professionalism and compassion.
The only complaint, something we hope the sheriff will work on in his second term, is that he has a penchant for unduly keeping secrets from taxpayers.
His opponent, Billy Wiatt, is also career law enforcement. He offers little to compete with Whitt, though. Indeed, his dismissal from the department earlier this year lends his campaign an unpalatable taste of payback. Wiatt denies that is why he is running, but he refuses to discuss the circumstances surrounding his firing.
Board of Supervisors
The only incumbent running for the board to draw an opponent is Steve Spradlin. Voters in District E, the northwest corner of the county and part of Blacksburg, should support the challenger, former Blacksburg Police Chief Bill Brown.
After a commendable career in law enforcement, Brown now turns to the elected side of government. He offers the only chance this year to bring fresh perspective to the board.
If elected, he hopes to encourage better long-term planning, improve physical infrastructure and fund higher teacher salaries to make Montgomery more competitive with peer counties and therefore better able to retain experienced educators. The first step in that process, however, will be improving relations between supervisors and the school board.
More important, Brown could be an invaluable liaison between the county and Blacksburg. The two have butted heads too often of late. Scuffles over the new stadium and the old middle school come to mind.
Incumbent Republican Steve Spradlin has performed adequately, but he offers little that should excite voters. Indeed, it is telling that he cites introducing prayer to board meetings first among his accomplishments. The current chairman of the board should have more substantive accomplishments to tout before that misguided move.
School Board
No one filed to run for the District F seat on the school board, from which Susan Morikawa is retiring. Instead, two candidates are running write-in campaigns. Voters in the district that includes Northwest Blacksburg and some nearby parts of the county should type Kelly Harrison's name into electronic voting machines.
Other seats are uncontested.
Harrison, who is adjunct faculty in child development at Virginia Tech, rightly points to several shortcomings in the current district leadership she would work to correct.
Superintendent Tiffany Anderson, Harrison says, has been a sloppy, ineffective leader. The board should not have renewed her contract.
Harrison also cites the recent struggles between the school board, supervisors and Blacksburg. One of her goals is to smooth those relationships.
Her opponent, Joe Ivers, has an ideal résumé. A career educator and school administrator, he only recently retired to Blacksburg, and it shows. An open mind is one thing, but Ivers has not developed positions on too many important issues. Voters should not gamble on him.
Given a few years to learn about the community and its schools, we think Ivers would make a strong future candidate. For now, though, Harrison receives our endorsement.
