I am a Shepherdstown resident and write to endorse James Gatz for mayor of Shepherdstown and explain why.

Jefferson County is experiencing rapid growth, with houses and solar developments expanding at an alarming rate. Unfortunately, Shepherdstown seems to be at the mercy of the Jefferson County Commission’s decisions, rather than our own. Some may argue that we have no control, but that’s not true.

In 2014, the town approved a comprehensive plan that laid out goals for Shepherdstown to deal with growth. In 2024, a 12-person committee worked for more than 1,100 hours to review the 2014 plan.

“One obvious finding the committee cannot avoid is that the town’s 2014 Comprehensive Plan typically has not been used by town officials and staff to shape town decisions over the past 10 years. . . With a few exceptions, there is little evidence that the 2014 Comprehensive Plan has been used to set agendas or priorities for action by Town Council, town commissions/committees and town staff. Instead, in all candor, the 2014 Comprehensive Plan has been mostly parked on the proverbial shelf without regular reference,” the committee said.

For the last decade, our town had a plan that anticipated our region’s growth and laid out ways to deal with it. Despite a plan to deal with the issues already in place, there is no evidence that anything has been done to control the growth in a way that favors the town. This lack of action has led to explosive growth around Shepherdstown, uncontrolled by the town. All decisions are made in Charles Town by the Jefferson County Commission (JCC). I submit this has not gone well for us. The solution to dealing with the JCC and growth is not to continue doing the same thing.

The problems have been well-known for a long time and were well-documented and planned for a decade ago. It’s not the planning that’s the problem; it’s the lack of execution, the lack of ongoing communication, and the lack of transparency. We need leadership who recognizes that the region has changed. The path to preserving Shepherdstown’s fundamental character will be by doing new things and doing them well. We cannot wait any longer.

It is time for us to put new leadership in place to deal with the growth.

James Gatz has held managerial and professional roles with the federal government and the U.S. Conference of Mayors for three decades. He has lived in Shepherdstown for almost a decade and has been actively involved with Shepherdstown Shares and Shepherdstown Votes. He currently represents Shepherdstown countywide on the Jefferson County Development Authority’s (JCDA) board of directors. Among his contributions to our town, James helped transform the JCDA’s mission following the Rockwool controversy, by bringing more transparency to its decision-making and championing its move away from attracting heavy industry and more toward light industry and supporting local entrepreneurs and growing businesses.

Now, more than ever, Shepherdstown needs new leadership. I urge you to join me in voting for James Gatz. The future of our town is at stake, and we cannot afford to wait any longer.

Stephen Skinner, of Shepherdstown