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Who says compromise and common sense are dead in a political setting?
In a remarkable display of cooperation earlier this month by wanting to do the right thing in moving Alpena forward, Alpena Councilman Danny Mitchell voted to promote Cindy Johnson to mayor.
She now assumes the seat vacated by Matt Waligora, who stepped down at the end of last year.
In early January, when the council first tried to appoint a replacement, the vote ended deadlocked, as Mitchell voted for Mike Nowak, as did Nowak. Karol Walchak and Johnson voted for Johnson.
Mitchell, in assessing the reality of picking Waligora's replacement, understood that, until one camp or the other changed their position, it was going to take a long time for a replacement to be picked. Wanting to avoid that, which he believed would not do anyone any good, he changed his vote, which made Johnson's selection three to one.
I especially appreciate Mitchell's logic and justification for his action. It was a classy gesture of leadership and compromise.
"We are like a family, and, as such, we don't always agree, but we still come together to complete the city's business," he said. "The city is lucky to have two qualified candidates, but another tie vote would not be good for the council. Therefore, my vote is to appoint Mayor Pro Tempore Cindy Johnson."
Before Alpena's branding slogan of "Sanctuary of the Great Lakes," for years and years, the city was known as "a warm and friendly port."
It seems to me that Mitchell believes that still to be true, and his desire as a respected councilman was to demonstrate strong leadership by his vote. His ultimate goal was to ensure that, at the end of each day, everyone was working in tandem with each other to make Alpena the best it can be.
Mitchell's family analogy reminds me of the old television show "The Waltons." The show always ended with the family saying goodnight to each other from their beds, with John Boy always the last to be greeted. It was a Walton tradition that seemed to evoke a sense of peace and calm to the family, as well as television viewers.
No matter how long the brothers and sisters might tease, torment and fight with each other during the day, they always came together at night before the sun went down.
Mitchell said a similar environment occurs at each council meeting.
Despite debate and differences, it seems the council always comes together for the good of the city.
Ultimately, who of us could ask for anything more than that?
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Once Johnson was appointed as mayor, the council moved quickly to fill her vacant seat with Erinn Kane, one of four candidates who expressed a desire to fill the role.
I have known Kane for quite awhile and believe she will bring a lot of energy and vision to the council.
Having been a public servant for most of her professional career, she brings a lot of constituent advocacy to the table. In the past, she worked in the offices of Jim Stamas, Pete Petallia, Dan Benishek, and John Moolenaar.
With that kind of experience already in place, it should help her in dealing with the needs of Alpena constituents as well.
Bill Speer retired in 2021 as the publisher and editor of The News. He can be reached at bspeer@thealpenanews.com.