Asheville Mayor Bellamy on WCQS radio show: Vote on domestic partnership benefits was politically divisive and meant to lay groundwork for future Councilman Smith mayoral run/ Smith says no plans for mayor

Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

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Asheville Mayor Terry Bellamy talked at length on Wednesday night’s WCQS radio show “Conversations” about her vote last week against the concept of the city extending benefits to city employees who have same-sex partners.

Bellamy told show host and WCQS News Director David Hurand that the way the issue was brought to council was a purely political move that bypassed normal council operating procedures. Councilman Gordon Smith had his own future political aspirations in mind by bringing the issue to the fore the way he did, Bellamy said.

Smith said he’s got no plans to run for mayor. “I hadn’t really thought about a mayoral run, but it was fun to walk into city hall today and have folks talking about that.” 

And in terms of the process, Smith said he followed the council-approved path: either have the issue go through committee, or use a consensus approach and have to other council members agree to have the issue put on an agenda. Smith said Councilmen Brownie Newman and Cecil Bothwell signed on to have the issue brought forward. Smith added that it’s the same process City Council is using to deal with the Downtown Master Plan — council approved it in concept, and will vote on implementation.

Smith noted that he spent a year campaigning on the domestic partner benefits issue, and “heard all over town” from people who supported his stance. “I feel very confident that we’ve done the right thing.”

Here’s Bellamy during the radio show:

“If this was really meant to only provide benefits to the employees of the city of Asheville and not to create a political dynamic for four years later for a person to potentially run for mayor, I think that it would have been done — that work would have been allowed to be done in advance in a way that our community could have understood staff’s issues, council’s concerns – all of that would have been put on the table in advance instead of, let’s throw it out there.”

When Hurand asked Bellamy to clarify, she said: 

“I think it’s important to be honest. For me to listen to 880 the Revolution and hear that the person who helped put this legislation together (say) we’ve watched the mayor for 10 years and she’s been silent on this issue and so we knew if we painted her in a corner that she would have to come out on a position – that’s not good policy,” Bellamy said.

“And I think that’s what’s wrong with any elected system – when we make policy to keep a seat, to run for another seat. We should make policies based on good data that’s going to unify our community, that’s going to serve the most good, that’s going to really help people – not for political gain.”

Hurand again pressed, asking Bellamy if she thought Smith’s motivation was to lay the groundwork for a mayoral run in four years. Bellamy:

“I think so, and I’m going to hold to that. I think if it was meant purely and sincerely to help the employees of the city of Asheville, he would have followed the process that was outlined, instead of going around and changing the process. At our retreat, we sat as a council and said we want to work together.”

During the conversation, Bellamy went into detail about her main objection: the way the issue was brought to council. 

“This issue came before city council without going through staff, without staff having an opportunity to provide information. Staff had to scramble to get the numbers that were needed to provide information for that report,” Bellamy said.

She added:

“I think as a steward of the city’s money, we have to ask questions. It’s OK to ask questions and see how it’s going to be done. It’s OK to find out different perspectives. Usually, when we have a large policy decision, whatever it is, we have staff input before it comes to council so you have a balanced conversation. Our community said we don’t want unbalanced conversations when we had a council member putting up information about illegal immigrants. It’s amazing how we don’t want balanced conversations over certain issues. We have to have a balanced conversation, and last week, it wasn’t balanced in the reporting, and that’s not fair to any policy-maker. It’s not fair to make a decision based upon just what one person says and not to have a complete report.”

Bellamy went on to say that it’s her understanding that the policy is a done deal, and city staff is working to install it. That statement runs contrary to the way that local media reported the result of last week’s vote. According to Mountain Xpress, council voted in favor of the concept, will hear implementation details during a March 9 work session, and will vote on implementation after that. On the radio show, Bellamy was accompanied by City Manager Gary Jackson, who said staff is working on details of implementation, a process he said could take up to 12 months.

Bellamy declined to say whether she was morally opposed to homosexuality when asked by a radio show caller.

“I don’t think that is appropriate. Too often, elected officials get pigeon-holed here or there, and I’m not going to do that. I’m sorry if people get mad, but I won’t go into what I believe about homosexuality. I’ll say this – that it’s unfortunate that that question has come after 11 years of being on city council. I’ve been at ribbon cuttings, at events, personal parties of individuals who are homosexual, who are straight. It’s unfortunate that I would be even put in a place to have to answer that question because of a vote.”

Read the Mountain Xpress recounting of all this here.

You can listen to the entire episode of this week’s “Conversations” on WCQS.