Last Tuesday (Aug. 6) the citizens of Black Diamond voted by over 66 percent for a new city mayor  — Dave Gordon — in the primary election. This huge majority clearly shows that the citizens of Black Diamond are not happy with the direction the incumbent mayor has taken this town.

With fewer than 19 percent of the vote the incumbent lost for several reasons:

1. She is a strong supporter of the massive YarrowBay development project. The vast majority of the Black Diamond’s citizens oppose YarrowBay and want a less disruptive future.

2. Her attempts to mislead the voters on the financial and legal issues around the development did not fool the people.

3. Mayor Olness ignored the will of the people, demonstrated in 2011 when we elected a new city council by over 70 percent of the vote. The YarrowBay development was the issue then and it is the issue now. The citizens of Black Diamond have sent a clear message that they meant what they said in 2011 and they are going to continue to take back the city.

The upcoming general election campaign promises to be a nasty affair. Mayor Olness will use lies, distortions, and campaign tricks to distort the positions of Dave Gordon. Already she is posting ridiculous claims about Dave Gordon’s intentions on her Facebook page. Mayor Olness’ mudslinging is doomed to fail. The citizens of Black Diamond are not stupid, even though Mayor Olness thinks they are, and when they talk to Dave Gordon they find a highly approachable, honest man with well thought out goals for this city.

The citizens of Black Diamond have spoken and we want a new direction for this city.

Gary Hanson

Black Diamond