In May, we could only watch the Hamilton County Commission fold under the pressure of the Mayor’s Office, liquidating one of Chattanooga’s most productive incubators. We own this asset. The argument was that the county had a better location, one better suited for the dozens of businesses that found a springboard to success at the existing facility.
The better option is nowhere to be found. And now our small businesses are the victims of someone else’s experiments.
Our leadership is so out of touch with reality that a minimum bid was set and has now been removed. That means that the “bottom dollar” once proposed is now the “top dollar.” County Mayor Weston Wamp pushed for and supported the liquidation of the Business Development Center. This unscrupulous decision was made by our Mayor’s Office because the experiments he promised are not working.
If the people suggesting that Hamilton County liquidate another asset had any sense of our best interests, we would not be removing the minimum bid threshold. We would be removing this proposal from consideration. Removing the minimum bid only means that the promised return on the liquidation was wrong (by a lot).
Wamp is selling Hamilton County off to the lowest bidder just to maintain the appearance of promises kept.
No health department as Hamilton County knew it, no incubator for our homegrown talent as we knew it, no change in prospects for our public schools and a community left wondering how we got here. The leadership of this local government has fallen short, and there is nothing else to take from us in exchange for more time.
It is easy to pawn off our struggles on the reality TV show unfolding on the national stage these days, but we can change our approach and make change locally.
It doesn’t matter your allegiance. The gloomy future demands more. The generations coming after us deserve more from us.
Here we are once again in our beloved state’s history. We have been on the wrong side of history for far too long. It takes a community willing to be courageous, fearless, compassionate and respectful.
We have a county leader who stands with and blindly supports the methods of our president and prides himself on mirroring Elon Musk’s methodology.
It’s up to us to remain hopeful and change things. Our collective voice cannot go silent.
As a society, we must respect each other. Respect doesn’t mean you have to agree, but for all that is sacred, I feel that we should respect that we are created equal and bestowed with certain rights — rights that have been denied for some for far too long.
Fear has gripped the South for a while. Growth is not easy. Most would agree that it is painful.
Let’s set aside our fear, fellow Tennesseans. You may feel as though your part doesn’t carry much weight. Our collective weight is the only thing that will bring about change.
To ignore that our voice matters will only make it more difficult for those who come after us to find happiness.
Mark Herndon is local general contractor, father of two public school students and a reformed Tennessean representing those who can’t. Reach him at Herndonforhamiltom@gmail.com.
