Brewer is moving in the right direction

Kevin Duplissie’s op-ed, “You can’t fight Brewer’s city hall” (BDN, July 25), reminded me of the saying, “If you tell a lie often enough, some people will actually believe it.” Each and every issue he raised was addressed multiple times over a two-hour period at our City Council meeting on June 27.

Yet, Duplissie would have readers believe that no answers were provided, and that the council disregarded his concerns.

Ironically, Duplissie invites people to review the videotape of the meeting. He would do well to review it himself.

Duplissie claims the council meeting was not properly advertised by the city clerk. Even after being provided with evidence to the contrary, Duplissie repeats the charge.

He claims that disparity exists in departmental expenses, and speaks of “disproportionate” salary increases.

Even after being told repeatedly by our financial director (Harvard educated and a certified auditor) that this was due to a widely publicized change in finance software, Duplissie repeats the charge.

He clamored at the beginning of the council meeting that he had found a $5 million error in the budget, which was then proven to be his own miscalculation. He alleges that there are “numerous errors” in the budget, although the only error proved to be a miscalculation in the Assessor’s Department narrative, not even part of the budget,

Yet facts don’t concern Duplissie, who then proceeds to repeat the charges.

He claims an error in our Homestead calculation, even after he was told the original figure was an estimate before the assessor had finalized her numbers.

Duplissie claims the council approved $1 million to move City Hall. He was told that figure was in fact $252,000, yet he repeats the charge.

I think I detect a pattern here, don’t you?

As a politician, I am supposed to be accustomed to people who make misrepresentations and have axes to grind. This behavior, however, is something that I will never accept.

Duplissie is one of a small minority of people who simply don’t like positive news, and don’t wish to be bothered by facts. Our city manager publicly invited Duplissie to meet with him on these and other matters to get his questions answered. Not surprisingly, Duplissie hasn’t called.

Apparently, making unfounded accusations is a lot more fun than those nagging factual answers.

Unlike Duplissie, I view Brewer as a success story. In the past year alone:

. The city was awarded $1.2 million in grant funding on sewer and other projects.

. Brewer led the state in encouraging towns and cities to return state aid to property tax relief, and did so itself, returning 110 percent.

. Brewer reduced its mill rate by $1.12 to $20.06.

. Spearheaded regionalization effort in the form of regional fire district.

. Opened Dirigo Drive for traffic and development.

. Began work on redevelopment of the former Eastern Fine Paper facility.

. Maine Institute for Human Health and Genetics announced it will locate to Brewer at the Cianchette building.

. Many new businesses have moved to Brewer, too numerous to mention.

Brewer is a great community in which to live and work. The city of Brewer is staffed by some of the finest, most professional people I have ever met. We’re not perfect and make mistakes on occasion like everyone.

However, Brewer does not deserve the drumbeat of negativity and false innuendo espoused by the likes of Duplissie.

Surely we can do better than that.

Michael Celli is a Brewer city councilor.