Jarrett Smith’s precipitous reversal on Junction development betrays cynicism on behalf of a hopeless cause (his quest for higher office).
Timeline
- February 23: Takoma Park Ward 5 City Councilman Jarrett Smith, who was reelected less than three months earlier, files to run for County Council, just four days before the 2/27 deadline. He is to face 32 opponents in the June 26 primary.
- April 20: Smith, who has supported plans to develop Takoma Junction for years, defends the project’s size in an email (implying his continued support).
- April 22: The City holds a “pop-up” event on the site of the proposed Junction development, encouraging visits by officials and residents.
- April 23: Smith authors an email asking for details on how to kill the project, which is the first indication of his flip.
- April 28: Smith explains his change of heart to City Manager Suzanne Ludlow, due to a couple of hostile voters he met at the pop-up, whom he “normally . . . wouldn’t care” about, but can’t ignore “right now.”
- May 4: At Smith’s request, a resident posts to two ward listservs Smith’s declaration of opposition to Junction development. (The councilman hadn’t posted any communication to these listservs for months.)
- May 11: Smith breaks his long boycott of the listservs with his campaign announcement for County Council. He announces no policy positions, providing only Takoma Park pride and ethnicity as campaign rationales.
- As of his mid-May campaign finance report, Smith has almost no support (he ranks 21st of 24 candidates who filed), not even within his ward. His campaign is invisible, he is nearly unknown outside of Takoma Park, and he has no money for campaign publicity.
- Conclusions
- “Right now” in Smith’s 4/28 email is all about his new status as a candidate for higher office.
- If Smith thinks he has any shot of finishing in the top 15 on June 26, I want some of what he’s smoking.
- It is unethical to kill good policy in service to one’s political career (common though it is). It is a shear mystery why one would do so when there’s no possible payback for the dirty deed, not even electoral victory.
The Flip: Takoma Junction development
On May 5 (before I knew the inside details), I wrote about Takoma Park City Councilman Jarrett Smith’s sudden reversal on Takoma Junction development after years of consistent support for the project. I portrayed his refusal to communicate his own views to Ward 5 residents (or solicit theirs), instead tasking a resident to post for him to the community listservs he had been boycotting for months.
Last week, an inside source provided your blogger with emails that detail how quickly and thoughtlessly Smith switched sides. As recently as April 20, Smith wrote to unnamed recipients in support of the project, defending the developer’s need for profit to make the plan viable:
Subject: Re: Getting more public space at the Junction
From: Jarrett Smith <[email protected]>
To: Jarrett Smith <[email protected]>
Date Sent: Friday, April 20, 2018 10:15:23 AM GMT-04:00
Date Received: Wednesday, May 16, 2018 3:20:28 PM GMT-04:00
I don’t understand how all of these financial assumptions can be made. NDC will have a construction and long term financing on this project. We also don’t know what their IRR is for their investors. Maybe that 8% is to cover brokerage commissions? I know that a project of this size, every dollar is important. A modest reduction in profits could ruin this entire project.
Jarrett
Jarrett K. Smith
Takoma Park City Council. Ward 5
[emphasis added]
Only three days later, Smith had switched sides, demanding information on how to kill the deal:
Subject: Junction Development
From: Jarrett Smith <[email protected]>
To: [email protected]
Bcc: [email protected]
Date Sent: Monday, April 23, 2018 10:44:43 AM GMT-04:00
Date Received: Wednesday, May 16, 2018 3:18:17 PM GMT-04:00
All,
The vote on NDC’s site plan proposal is coming before us in the next few weeks. I think we need to review the DA that unwinds the deal. We need to know the penalties so we can share with residents before May 9th. I ask staff to share the details with us as soon as possible.
Jarrett
Jarrett K. Smith
Takoma Park City Council. Ward 5
[emphasis added]
It took Smith five more days to declare his implacable opposition to Junction development, when he refused to take part in the survey of councilmembers regarding areas of agreement and disagreement:
Subject: Re: Important Update on Council schedule re Budget and Junction
From: Jarrett Smith <[email protected]>
To: Suzanne Ludlow <[email protected]>
Cc: City Council <[email protected]>, “Damweber, Jason”
<[email protected]>, Jessie Carpenter <[email protected]>, Sara Daines
<[email protected]>, Rosalind Grigsby <[email protected]>, “Cheung,
Susan” <[email protected]>
Date Sent: Saturday, April 28, 2018 11:20:26 AM GMT-04:00
Date Received: Saturday, April 28, 2018 11:20:28 AM GMT-04:00
Thanks, Kacy for taking the lead on compiling Junction survey and drafting the resolution. I won’t be filling the survey because I’m a no vote on moving the [sic] forward. I wanted you to know why there are only six survey responses.
Jarrett
Jarrett K. Smith
Takoma Park City Council. Ward 5
[emphasis added]
Later that day, Smith responded to City Manager Suzanne Ludlow’s inquiry about his sudden opposition to the plan:
Subject: Re: Important Update on Council schedule re Budget and Junction
From: Jarrett Smith <[email protected]>
To: Jarrett Smith <[email protected]>
Bcc: [email protected]
Date Sent: Saturday, April 28, 2018 1:38:53 PM GMT-04:00
Date Received: Wednesday, May 16, 2018 2:55:22 PM GMT-04:00
Suzie,
I can’t afford fighting with anymore of my super voters. I was told at the pop up if I support this project there will be war. In normal circumstances I wouldn’t care, but not now.
Jarrett
Jarrett K. Smith
Takoma Park City Council. Ward 5
[Empasis added. The “pop up” referred to was a site visit for residents organized by
the city on April 22.]
“Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t care,” writes Jarrett Smith, “but not now.”
What does “not now” mean? Well, the one thing that has changed just recently in Smith’s calculations is his last-minute decision to go for a political promotion to the Montgomery County Council: in this email he is declaring a swap of policy for votes.
Clearly what happened is that a couple of residents collared Smith at the April 22 “pop up” and declared potential war on him if he wouldn’t help kill the Junction project. His sudden fear of a minuscule number of lost county-council votes was enough for him to sell out the city and the rest of his constituents. Just. Like. That.
It is one thing for an elected official (or anyone else) to change their view after considerable study over a period of time. The suddenness of Smith’s switch (not to mention his disinterest in resident input prior to that day) betrays its cynicism.
The Flop: A hopeless campaign for County Council
Smith campaign status:
- He is one of 32 Democratic at-large candidates on June 26.
- Many candidates started campaigning almost a year ago. Smith launched his campaign on February 23, four days before the filing deadline.
- Smith rejected public financing of his campaign, anathema to campaign-finance-reform fans.
- He hasn’t exactly been raking in the bucks through private fundraising, though: his total raised of $5,610 and his cash balance of $2,427 put him in 21st place of 24 campaigns that filed reports due by May 15.
- Only four of Smith’s 32 contributions come from Ward 5 residents (by comparison, 250 contributions are necessary to qualify for public financing).
- Nearly half the dollars Smith has raised comes from out of state (three from possible relatives, with the surname “Smith”).
- The two-thousand and change Smith has on hand won’t pay for s single mailer, which Seventh State Blog estimates would start at $35,000.*
- Smith has almost no name recognition among voters outside of one part of Takoma Park.
In sum
Jarrett Smith’s political ambition is shear fantasy. It wouldn’t be worth a second glance, if he weren’t selling us out on its behalf.
Jarrett Smith’s flip is clear: a sudden and complete reversal on a project vital to Takoma Park. His flop is just as apparent: a campaign having no apparent public purpose** or prospect of success.
I’m baffled. What Smith has done here just doesn’t make any sense, not even for his own self-interest (his campaign is an embarrassment that won’t help him at all in should he go for the glory again in 2022).
I wrote last fall about Smith’s sense of entitlement to public office and disregard for constituents. We can now add delusions of grandeur to the bill of particulars on this unfit politician. Residents need to hold Jarrett Smith’s feet to the fire if they are to have any hope he will remember his serious obligations to engage them and to further public policy without self-interest.
*Statistics are from Seventh State Blog and the Maryland Board of Elections.
**Smith broke his long boycott of community listservs on May 11, when he posted a campaign announcement with these vapid rationales:
- Montgomery County is now majority ethnic;
- Since Ike Leggett’s election approximately 30 years ago as the first African American At-Large County Councilmember, every ethnic member of the county council has held another previous elected office. In my case, I am in my 4th term representing Takoma Park’s City Council; and lastly,
- this year’s election will be the very last time a Takoma Park Councilmember can maintain his or her seat and run for another office, therefore, in the spirit of solidarity and Takoma Park tradition, I need you.
[excerpted verbatim from Smith’s 5/11 email]
©2018 Keith Berner
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