Speakers:

JW:

Lt. Gov. John Wilder

BC:

Buck Chambers, Mayor of Piperton

BM:

Bill Mullins, Mayor of Oakland

PG:

Pat Garrett, Mayor of Gallaway

DP:

Dana Pittman, Editor of Fayette County Insider

BS:

Bill Short, Reporter for Fayette County Review

This meeting was held in the conference room of John Wilder’s law office on the Somerville Square.

JW:

Let me see that. Who all… I asked three mayors to come.

BM:

You got us. Me and Buck and she’s [indicates Pat Garrett] the mayor of Gallaway.

BC:

And I brought my planning engineer.

JW:

You brought your engineer with you

BC:

When there’s anything to discuss on planning or zoning or anything, I always have him with me.

JW:

Who else we got?

BM:

I guess I was wondering why the news press and all that’s here.

JW:

I didn’t invite the newspapers.

DP:

We were at that meeting in Piperton last Thursday night and…

BC:

The zoning was mentioned and that’s how it happened.

DP:

And if it’s the growth plan, I mean, that’s open discussion I would think.

BM:

I might not feel too comfortable myself in a conference with these circumstances. We’ve had a lot of negativity shown to us by the Fayette Review. Seems everything we do gets turned into something negative.

JW:

What I invited… I invited the three mayors to see me and that’s all I invited.

BC:

I told you I was going to bring my engineer with me.

JW:

Well, if you want your engineer, it’s all right with me.

BC:

My planning engineer. I told you I was going to bring my planning engineer. I feel like in this it affects us and we want to make sure of anything along this western border.

PG:

I’m with Mayor Mullins. I don’t think we need a newspaper here. I really don’t.

DP:

The growth plan affects everybody in the county. The Coordinating Committee is composed of the mayors and other representatives. They’re going to vote on this so it seems to me that…

JW:

Going to vote on what?

DP:

On whatever growth plan…

BC:

I don’t think this pertains to the growth plan.

All mayors speaks at once.

PG:

It’s not a growth plan.

BC:

Not a growth plan. This is on the border of Fayette County.

PG:

Yes. That’s all we’re meeting about.

BC:

It’s on the border’s all we’re meeting on. No growth plan. Everything’s in place. It’s just…

JW:

Who invited everybody besides…

BC:

I didn’t invite anybody.

BM:

Nor did I.

BC:

I invited one person and I told you on the front end.

JW:

I’ll tell you what. I had something I want to talk to you about, but I don’t need to talk to you about it.

BM:

I don’t want you to.

JW:

There ain’t nothing I need to talk about no way. I mean I…

BC:

But, I need to give you something, if you don’t mind me doing this. If you can read that for me.

JW:

Okay.

BC:

[Buck Chambers gets up and gives John Wilder a piece of paper. What Chambers says to Wilder at this point cannot be heard.]

JW:

This is for what city?

BC:

Piperton.

JW:

Piperton. OK.

BC:

It’s here on what it’s for and the project it’s for. See we get a one-time…

JW:

I’ll do what I can.

BC:

That’s alright. Keep this. I’ve got a copy that I want you to keep.

JW:

This doesn’t have anything to do with growth plan. It was something I felt like I should talk with the three mayors about the future of the county. It’s not something I want to go public with. I don’t believe I even need to think about it anymore. But I just thought you all ought to think about it.

PG:

It was my understanding, too. I didn’t come here for no growth meeting.

BM:

No.

DP:

If you’re talking about the western border of the county that’s…

JW:

Tell me who you are, young lady.

DP:

I’m Dana Pittman.

JW:

And what do you do?

DP:

I’m a citizen of Fayette County. I’ve been in…

BM:

She stirs up trouble.

JW:

You’re a citizen of Fayette County?

DP:

Yes, sir. And I’ve been involved in concerns of the…

JW:

What city do you live in?

DP:

I live in rural Fayette County.

JW:

Longtown?

DP:

No. Out near Laconia.

JW:

Out where?

DP:

Out near Laconia.

JW:

Laconia?

DP:

Yes, sir.

JW:

Well, I’ll tell you one thing. There ain’t nothing in this thing gonna affect you, I don’t think.

DP:

I think when the growth…

PG:

It’s not a growth thing. You don’t understand. It’s not a growth thing. We’re just discussing some…

JW:

That’s all right. Don’t uh…

DP:

Well, I mean, if I need to leave, I’ll certainly leave. But…

JW:

Who invited you to my offices?

DP:

As I said, there was a meeting down in Piperton Thursday night. We were discussing the growth plan. Mayor Chambers mentioned…

BC:

They asked me about the city’s growth plan and I said we’re working on it right now. Senator Wilder and myself.

JW:

That’s the city of Piperton?

BC:

The City of Piperton. Right. We’re working on…

DP:

And he mentioned that you all were having a meeting this afternoon. I asked him if it was an open meeting.

BC:

What did I tell you?

DP:

You told me…

BC:

I said, “He’ll ask you to leave but you can come if you want to.”

DP:

No. No, sir.

BC:

But, I didn’t invite anybody.

JW:

I’m goin…  What paper are you with? (directed to Bill Short)

BS:

I thought that you were going to be discussing the streamlined sales tax issue. That’s why I’m here.

JW:

?? me?

??:

No. He thought you were going to discuss something else.

JW:

Are you with the newspaper?

BS:

The Fayette County Review.

JW:

No, we’re not going to talk about the sales tax.

BC:

You were in that meeting where we met with the Bartlett mayor on streamline tax.

BS:

Yes. And also, I was at the Joint Economic Community Development Board meeting last Thursday and you mentioned that you had requested a meeting with Gov Wilder.

BC:

That’s when you called me (directed at John Wilder), when I was in the Joint Economic Development Board meeting.

JW:

If you want to sit in here and if I could talk to you “under the shield” and you’re not going to publish what I say, I’m glad for all of you to stay. Otherwise, I’m not going to talk.

BS:

Well, if you don’t feel comfortable talking with a reporter in the room, then I don’t know whether I should stay.

JW:

I don’t need to do anything on this thing. I can leave it alone and forget it.

BC:

I think since we’ve spent our time to come up here, Senator. I think we need to ask the uninvited guests to leave. And let’s get on with business.

JW:

[Pause]

PG:

The decision… It’s up to you.

DP:

I certainly don’t want to waste the mayors’ time driving down here.

JW:

You want to do what?

DP:

I certainly don’t want to have wasted the mayors’ time driving down here.

JW:

The mayors?

BM:

All of us.

JW:

Are you representing them?

DP:

No, sir. I’m a citizen very concerned about the growth in the county and the growth plan.

JW:

Well, I’m not in any growth plan. I don’t know about it. But, uh…

DP:

I’m just saying if it deals with… If it’s how you’re going to deal with the western side of the county, that is the growth plan.

JW:

You don’t want any more growth, I imagine.

DP:

That’s not the issue here.

JW:

You want more growth, I imagine.

DP:

I want it to be dealt with so that the public has input into how the growth is going to be dealt with in the county.

JW:

What is your relation to the growth plan? You’re just a citizen?

DP:

Yes, sir.

JW:

I’m proud of every one of you. And I…

BM:

[Mullins stands up as though to leave.]

JW:

And you got it.

DP:

Mayor Mullins, I’ve already told you all I’m happy to leave if that’s what needs to be done.

BM:

Well, you ain’t got up and left.

BC:

I think you need to, Dana, if you would.

JW:

We don’t need to…

BM:

I don’t want to act ugly but…

JW:

This county… These cities are on go and they’re goin’ keep on going. And you can keep on straightening them out and get them on the right course and make ‘em do what’s right.

DP:

But, we need to have our meetings about the planning of growth for the county be open to the public.

JW:

We’re not talking about growth in Fayette County.

DP:

Okay. Just the western border.

JW:

We’re not going to talk about growth in Fayette County.

BC:

No growth.

JW:

We’ve got growth in the western of Fayette County.

DP:

Yes, sir.

JW:

And we got it.

DP:

Yes, sir.

JW:

And it’s there.

DP:

Yes, sir. And it’s the public’s business.

JW:

It’s public business?

DP:

Yes, sir.

JW:

It is? What about a desert. Is it public business, too?

DP:

I’m sorry, what?

JW:

A desert. Is that public business?

DP:

[It took multiple repeats of this portion of the tape with various adjustments to finally understand that Wilder was saying the word “desert”.]

JW:

[Everyone was having a good laugh at this point.]

DP:

I just didn’t understand what you said.

JW:

I understand that. I understand.

DP:

Planning for the growth in this county is public business.

JW:

This is not a growth plan meeting.

DP:

Okay.

JW:

Uh…       Sure is not.

DP:

Interesting that you have a planner here to do a non-planning meeting.

BC:

He’s with me.

DP:

[Dana Pittman and Bill Short stood up and moved toward the door.]

BS:

What is the nature of this meeting, Governor?

JW:

This is a legal meeting that I thought I was going to have in my law office to talk to these three mayors about.

BS:

Are you the personal attorney for these three mayors?

JW:

No, sir, I’m not. But I created some of these cities. Two of them.

BM:

Might be before it’s over with. That’s what we’re doing here.

BS:

If there’s a potential attorney-client relationship here…

JW:

I did represent the City of Gallaway. I created the City of Gallaway and I helped create the City of Piperton.

BS:

All right. As long as it’s going to be an attorney-client discussion, we understand.

BM:

Well, that’s exactly what it is.

DP:

Okay.

PG:

Thank y’all.

DP:

Y’all have a good meeting.

Dana Pittman and Bill Short left the meeting then stood on the sidewalk outside John Wilder’s office door talking. Two minutes after they left the meeting, the Piperton planner came out, too.