An Impasse
So tonight I went to the Town of Carrboro Board of Aldermen meeting. I wanted to discuss this issue face to face with them since the email with the mayor did not work. I'm a believer in the fact that people are more inclined to work together in person than by email. This is especially true when you're asking someone for something; it's a lot harder to say no to a face than an email address.
Anyway, the town let me speak first and I thought I gave a very fair and pointed speech. I presented the same points that I did in my email traffic with Mayor Mark Chilton, but I added one point that I really wish I had remembered earlier. If you knew me in 2008, you know that the Army called me back to active duty in the spring for a deployment to Iraq. My original report date was March 16, but I sent the Army a letter informing them that I was in graduate school and they backed up my deployment to May 18 so I could finish the semester. It makes sense that if the Army can delay a soldier's deployment in the global war on terrorism in the interests of education, the Town of Carrboro should be able to do the same thing.
Mayor Mark Chilton interjected at one point during my speech, saying the order to vacate came from Orange County courts, not from Carrboro, and that a settlement setting Oct. 31 as the deadline for vacating the apartment was reached by the town and my landlord. He said the town had given my landlord enough extensions and that she had not dealt honestly with the town's leaders. I responded by saying I wasn't asking for an extension from her, but for me. He responded with a nod.
As I told him, I'm not defending my landlord. She shouldn't have rented me the apartment. She should have let me know what was going on before I signed the lease. All I'm saying is, the town has the ability to go after my landlord without turning the screws to me in the process. The fact that they don't agree with me is awfully perplexing.
Either way, I left unsuccessful in convincing the town to allow me to stay through the semester. Carrboro posts video of town hall meetings to the Internet, so I'll post a link to the video from tonight's meeting as soon as it goes up.
Anyway, the town let me speak first and I thought I gave a very fair and pointed speech. I presented the same points that I did in my email traffic with Mayor Mark Chilton, but I added one point that I really wish I had remembered earlier. If you knew me in 2008, you know that the Army called me back to active duty in the spring for a deployment to Iraq. My original report date was March 16, but I sent the Army a letter informing them that I was in graduate school and they backed up my deployment to May 18 so I could finish the semester. It makes sense that if the Army can delay a soldier's deployment in the global war on terrorism in the interests of education, the Town of Carrboro should be able to do the same thing.
Mayor Mark Chilton interjected at one point during my speech, saying the order to vacate came from Orange County courts, not from Carrboro, and that a settlement setting Oct. 31 as the deadline for vacating the apartment was reached by the town and my landlord. He said the town had given my landlord enough extensions and that she had not dealt honestly with the town's leaders. I responded by saying I wasn't asking for an extension from her, but for me. He responded with a nod.
As I told him, I'm not defending my landlord. She shouldn't have rented me the apartment. She should have let me know what was going on before I signed the lease. All I'm saying is, the town has the ability to go after my landlord without turning the screws to me in the process. The fact that they don't agree with me is awfully perplexing.
Either way, I left unsuccessful in convincing the town to allow me to stay through the semester. Carrboro posts video of town hall meetings to the Internet, so I'll post a link to the video from tonight's meeting as soon as it goes up.
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