As concerned residents of St. Michaels, we were shocked to learn about an important development in the race for Town Commissioner. Several days ago at a candidates forum sponsored by the St. Michaels Business Association and restricted to only business community attendees, Mr. David Wojciechowski who is seeking one of three Commissioner slots, stated that he was in favor of spending our Town’s entire annual revenue generated by the Talbot County Accommodations Tax for advertising to promote tourism and thereby increase foot traffic for the benefit of the business community who he was addressing. He was asked by the moderator, “What role do you believe the town government should play in marketing and promoting St. Michaels as a prime destination for tourism and retail. While making the point that advertising a specific business would be wrong, he went on to say… “to reinvest that $850,000 coming into accommodations to promote this town, to make sure, to affirm that we will have it, that’s the prudent thing to do.”
We believe that Mr. Wojciechowski’s position is fiscally reckless and a betrayal of the residents of St. Michaels who pay the majority of taxes which support our Town. In fact, at a candidate forum sponsored by residents of the St. Michaels Historic District on April 13, Mr. Wojciechowski expressed considerable skepticism about the need to spend tax dollars for tourism marketing and cited existing and very substantial yearly marketing expenditures by the Inn at Perry Cabin, the Wildset Hotel and the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. In front of the business community, he appears to have radically altered his position on this critical issue. The $850,000 in yearly revenue from the Accommodation Tax accounts for 20 percent of the Town’s budget. To spend this enormous sum for tourism promotion which primarily benefits the business community as candidate Wojciechowski advocates is wrong. It will mean that St. Michaels will need to increase taxes for residents and businesses to support a massive revenue shortfall or reduce vital services related to policing and infrastructure improvements.
We believe there is a strong and growing consensus among St. Michaels residents that oppose spending tax dollars to support tourism and benefit businesses. The business community asking for these expenditures knows well that Talbot County has set aside substantial sums for tourism promotion given the fact that tourism brings in $300 million in yearly revenue for the entire county. St. Michaels is a major generator of County tourism. The business community and their chosen candidate, David Wojciechowski, appear willing to raid our Town’s budget for this irresponsible and unprecedented expenditure to the detriment of all taxpayers.
Residents of St. Michaels want a thriving and dynamic business community. This misguided position is not the way to achieve it.
Walda DuPriest
John Novak
Daniel Spiegel
Karen Wald
Walda DuPriest
John Novak
Daniel Spiegel
Karen Wald
St. Michaels
Karen Footner says
If the Town acquired a Main Street designation, it would gain access to State funds that can be used to enhance its physical appearance.
Alfred R Mercier, Town Commissioner for St. Michaels says
It appears as though due diligence should have been exercised before printing such an article that categorically is taken out of context or misinformation is being transmitted in such a way to distort the facts. Having sat through a few of our town’s meet and greet sessions, I do not remember this ever being said. Perhaps the $850K is referring to next years proposed accommodations tax collected earmarked in the budget?? If so then this amount will be spent appropriately as it relates to the infrastructure of the town and supporting tourists and residents in a manner as dictated by the accommodations tax that will be collected. There are many areas where this has been spent in the past to support the town, such as additional police officers, trash collection and crossing guards just to name a few. I can assure you that will not change. The thought of spending $850K on just marketing is absurd and makes no sense. Knowing David Wojciechowski he did not make such a comment. He and I have spoken over the last several weeks regarding certain ways to increase revenue to the town and one way is possibly to increase the accommodations tax, if agreed to by the town at large, and a portion of the incremental amount would be used to market the town. This amount would be far less than the amount in discussion. Please stick with the facts, and not take things out of context.
Terye Reese Knopp says
Well I was at that meeting along with business owners and residents . It was a public meeting . Everything that is stated here by the 4 concerned residents is not factual at all . Actually Candidate Wojciechowski did not say one word of what you are accusing . Using false information to slander one’s campaign is unacceptable and in poor taste in our community . I suggest you go and watch the meeting and get the facts before making public statements . Terye Reese Knopp concerned Business owner
Brian Wroten says
Since I do have a publicly-stated, adjacent position to Mr. Wojciechowski, I wanted to add that I do think SOME of the Accommodations Tax should be used for the tourism budget. The amount of that can be debated, but I also am strongly advocating we increase to the state standard of 6%, along with pursuing additional income pathways (ie. monetizing parking, tourism fee on restaurants/retail/hotel/airbnb, inventory tax, renting town landmarks for spaces/special events) to fund our long term infrastructure projects that are very necessary to keep us out of the Miles River.
Marty Madden says
Wow…it looks like 4 individuals who didn’t even attend the meeting they reference, want to bring the DC politics of distortion and attacks to St Michaels. Don’t let them do it. Unlike the four signers, I was at the meeting and heard my neighbor and friend, David Wojciechowski, reference using a small portion of the whole accommodation tax for St Michaels promotion, not its entirety. Perhaps his phrasing could have been more precise but his intent was clear…a small portion. Such vitriol towards David raises a question. Why? Did someone, perhaps one of the other candidates, encourage these individuals to write the letter or even assist in its drafting? The voters of St Michaels deserve a clear, upfront answer.
Please don’t reward this insertion of toxic politics into Saint Michaels. David will make a great Town Commissioner and his election will send a strong message that there’s no room for negative, distorted politics in St Michaels.
David Wojciechowski says
LETTER FROM DAVID WOJCIECHOWSKI TO THE EDITOR AND READERS:
It deeply saddens me that our local politics have reached the point, where four individuals (not in attendance at the quoted meeting) have chosen to completely misrepresent my intent about the Accommodation Tax. This meeting was open to the public and not solely for the St. Michaels Business Association.
I have been consistent and public about my position on the revenue generated from the Accommodation Tax. To be crystal clear, my proposal is to find ways to grow the revenue from the accommodation tax all of which is re-invested into the Town of St Michaels. My proposal is that only a small portion of our revenue will be used for the promotion of our town to ensure the reliability from this critical revenue line. My position is to secure this revenue as well as create new innovative revenue streams for our future and necessary investment in infrastructure. This type of thinking relieves the burden on residents and businesses and presents greater opportunities for all of us. I have broadly and consistently shared this message with residents, business owners, and non-profits that public money will not be used for private businesses.
When given the context of the entire conversation that evening, it is unfortunate that my omission of one clarifying word when discussing this topic, is used to the detriment of my candidacy and misrepresents my position. Resorting to “scare tactics” by a few are not to the benefit of our town and points to the reason why a change of incumbent leadership is required.
Michael Estrella says
Why is it that I am not surprised that members of the St. Michaels Action Committee, better known as SMAC, and others of a seeming like mind would get this so wrong? Throwing facts to the wind and creating false narratives has been their Modus Operandi since they first accused three town commissioners of ethics issues but failed to prove those unfounded charges. It is long past time for SMAC and their allies to learn the difference between fact and fiction and stop using false narratives!
Phyllis Kennedy says
Absolutely inaccurate. I attended this Candidate’s Forum and listened to it all. It was NOT a private event. I do not own a business in St. Michaels, BUT I am a Concerned Citizen as well. None of the Concerned Citizens were in attendance. This letter, the comments made within, and the harm it does to our gentle living is nothing short of heartbreaking. One must be curious as to how they developed this narrative.
While I generally try to keep my politics private, in this instance, I must speak out.
For starters, if anyone thinks there is any legitimacy to this, you are misinformed. If it were true, then there would have been a parade on Wednesday in Mr. Wojciechowski’s honor – sponsored by the St. Michaels Business Association. There was not. Further evidence of the false statements is my conversation with 10 business owners today to confirm that we were actually at the same meeting. When I presented the question – did Mr. Wojciechowski commit the entire accommodations tax to funding advertising for St. Michaels? Most laughed when asked, but all said NO – he did not!
It’s a sad day when tactics like these are used to hold on to a seat at the Commissioner’s table. It pits various groups against each other and breeds mistrust. We have been thru this, and in my opinion, the residents of the town do NOT want it, now —or ever again. We deserve better than this, and I trust we will use our votes to make certain we have it.
Phyllis Kennedy
Laurie Powers says
Sadly, this seemingly intentional attempt to misrepresent and discredit the widely popular COSM candidate David Wojciechowski by members of the former 2020 election attack dog group SMAC does not surprise me. They have pulled many such stunts in the past, in part to help Commissioner Breimhurst get elected four years ago. But, it should surprise all of us, because dirty, underhanded attempts to smear a competitor have no place in civil discourse or community elections. We are all neighbors in this small and special town, after all.
What this letter represents is sick and speaks volumes about Mr. Breimhurt’s supporters and campaign. This is a prime example of the twisted, dishonest and divisive atmosphere created by the current president of our town council. Do we want this type of person representing us and our community? I certainly don’t. And I campaigned and voted for Mr. Breimhurst four years ago, but regretted it almost immediately, for reasons similar to this.
I was at the referenced meeting and have heard Mr. Wojciechowski speak about this subject numerous times, and never once has he said what is being taken out of context by people who were not even in attendance at the meeting. The question everyone should be asking is why are these people (at least two of whom are on town boards – one on Planning and one on ETHICS, think about that) so desperate to keep Mr. Breimhurst in office that they would stoop to such lows in their tactics? I can guess, but what I know is, we deserve better.
John Marrah says
I attended this meeting and am surprised to read this letter to the editor. The comments attributed to Mr. Wojciechowski are not a true representation of what he said or what he meant. This was the first time that I have ever met Mr Wojciechowski or heard him speak. I was impressed by his and other candidates understanding that we as a community need to work together and listen to each other and act together in the best interests of St. Michaels.
Multiple comments were made by existing commissioners that the town did not need to pay for advertising for our local businesses. I believe that factually, these commissioners are correct. I believe that each individual business is responsible for marketing themselves to their customers. It is not the taxpayers responsibility to pay for advertising for individual businesses. I also believe the Commissioners that were making these comments misunderstand the role and obligation a town government has in its own success. This is not an issue of residents against businesses. This is not an issue of who is paying for what. We all share in the success or failure of our community.
I believe that a town with a future is absolutely responsible for defining and promoting the brand of the town. As a business owner and past Vice Chairman of the St. Michaels Tourism Board, I hope I that I have a pretty decent understanding of branding and promotion. I no longer own a tourism facing business (yes we do have a few businesses in St. Michaels not dependent on tourism dollars) but even my families business is dependent on the long term success and economic growth of our town.
Most of you came to this town because of its beauty and the realization of the brand that was built over many years of hard work by many in our town. I believe that we need to continue to work together to reinforce and yes, promote our brand of being an amazing place to visit and to eventually live. This is what drives the economic success of our town. This brand, this reality, is what maintains and increases the value of our homes and allows us to have our wonderful shops, restaurants and attractions.
I hope that the next set of Commissioners of St. Michaels can work to bring all in our town together and maybe even bring back a Tourism or Economic Development Board that has our business leaders and town residents all working together for our mutual success, each understanding the others wishes and challenges and working together to maintain and drive the economic success of St. Michaels.
Jennifer Stevens says
Stating that candidate Wojciechiwski would want to use all 850,000 on promotion of the town is an absolute untruth. I was present at the meeting, and did think to myself at one point towards the end that a comment made by someone present, did make it sound like the candidates were referring to the entire expenditure of the Accommodations Tax. But anyone in their right mind that attended the meeting, knows that this was not the intention. Nor does the business community of the town think that this would be the right thing to do. For four people, none of whom were actually present at the meeting, to take this untruth and spread it, is completely unfair and downright slanderous.
Daniel Spiegel says
To David W., Al, Marty and Terye–A couple of basic truths that may seem inconvenient. The SMBA candidate forum was not advertised or “open to the public” in the normal sense of that term. You know that! The fact that a few residents who were friends of the candidates came to the event does not change the fact that it was for the business community. By the way, there is nothing wrong with that. But that is why those who drafted the statement did not attend.
David Wojciechowski’s response to a question about the use of tax funds to promote the Town was recorded and even though we did not attend the meeting, we had access to the tape and based our views on his actual words in that transcript. We did not intend to misrepresent his views. We listened to them and then submitted our letter.
We are pleased that David Wojciechowski has now finally clarified his position in response to our statement. He now says very clearly that if he were to serve as Commissioner “a small portion of our revenue” will be used to promote the Town. In other words, he will support using St. Michaels tax dollars to increase tourism and thus benefit business interests–a position the business community strongly favors. He notably did not say: “I will use all of my power as Commissioner to demand that Talbot County use a portion of its substantial tourism and development funds to promote St. Michaels, a major driver of tourism for the County, and I am not in favor of using your tax dollars for tourism marketing.”
Putting the tax issue aside, what troubles us most is that all of you are purposely trying to create a narrative that the residents and the candidates who might oppose David Wojciechowski’s policies for our Town are somehow violating an unwritten norm of civility and scarring people. Even though St. Michaels is a very small town, democracy can still flourish here. And to do so, it needs healthy debate and widespread public participation in political campaigns. You are certainly not the arbiters to tell us how much debate and opposition is allowed in our community. Dan Spiegel, John Novak
Julie Campbell says
Where are you getting your “facts” Dan, Karen, John and Walda? Not one of you were in attendance at the candidate forum hosted by the Saint Michaels Business Association on Tuesday, April 23rd. Marty Madden asks the right question: “Did someone, perhaps one of the other candidates, encourage these individuals to write the letter or even assist in its drafting? This smear campaign against David Wojciechowski is disheartening to say the very least.”
I’d like to thank Brian Wroten for his prompt and clear response stating his position on how some of the Accommodation Tax revenue should be spent.
David Wojciechowski said that he would like to see the revenue generated by the Accommodation Tax reinvested in the Town. He suggested gathering data by reaching out to the business community and asking “how is your year going? how’s your occupancy? how’s your ADR (average daily rate)? how’s your sales/square foot? We need to partner with businesses to promote.” Using data is a best and prudent practice in decision making. This was David’s point.
David Breimhurst says
To the Editor:
I am sure Mr. Wojciechowski is a fine gentleman and could be a fine commissioner if elected, but since he has dragged me into this discussion by inference, I feel compelled to add my two cents. I was there as one of the participants in this invitation-only St. Michaels Business Association forum last Tuesday evening. Afterword people were asking me how it went and which topics were covered. I told them I was frankly astonished by Mr. Wojciechowski’s suggestion that our accommodations tax revenue, 20% of the town’s operating budget, should be reinvested in promoting the town. My response to his comment was immediate, I said “ I’ve got to say I’m a little stunned when I hear comments like take the $850,000 in accommodations tax money and put it to marketing. If we did that we’d have to lay off half the police department and cancel all the events that bring so many people to town.” Mr. Wojciechowski had a chance then and there to clarify. He had no response.
I was surprised that some of the letter writers here who were at the event had a different recollection. So, I went back and listened to an audio recording to be sure I hadn’t somehow misheard or misinterpreted Mr. Wpjciechowski’s comment. He made it clear that spending taxpayer dollars on direct advertising for businesses would be wrong, but capped his remarks by saying, “To reinvest that $850,000 coming in to the accommodations to promote this town to make sure, to affirm that we will have it. That’s the prudent thing to do.“
There was no mention of “partial” use of the accommodations tax for promoting the town. His words were clear in answer to the moderator’s question, “What role do you believe the town government should play in marketing and promoting St. Michaels as a prime destination for tourism and retail”? I have spoken to others who attended the event and they confirm they too heard what I heard.
I give Mr. Wojciechowski the benefit of the doubt since these events can be a mashup of under-the-gun messaging, and he may have chosen his words poorly. He could have, but did not, set the record straight as soon as I made my comments. Others were also shocked by what he said and it is their right to react. Some were alarmed enough to sign their names to a letter to the editor.
Throughout this campaign I have shown nothing but respect and courtesy to all of the candidates, taking issue with some of their views, but not attacking them personally. And I wish them well, win or lose. After all, we may have diverging views on how to get there, but in the end, we all seek the same outcome…a safe, secure and prosperous future for everyone who calls St. Michaels Home.
One final word about the Business Association forum. It was decidedly NOT a public event. It had apparently been planned as a showcase for the St. Michaels Business Association’s chosen three candidates. After concerns were raised by some members of the SMBA, the other four candidates, myself included, were invited on short notice just a few days before the event. I know of no advance notice or invitation to the public at large. Nothing appeared on social media or on the SMBA website announcing this forum. I didn’t even bring my wife since it was clear to me that it was invitation-only.
David Breimhurst
President/Commissioners of St. Michaels
David Wojciechowski says
David B,
The reason I did not refute your statement at the forum, is when you consider the totality, context, and intention of my response; 1) I failed to understand the basis of your referenced point and (2) nor did I realize your response was directed to me at that time. Perhaps we all need to take a moment and ask that positions be clarified for the betterment of each other and the constituents that we serve. I know you agree that we can conduct a campaign process with dignity and grace. We are all human and within a “live spontaneous” setting we can all reflect upon the benefit from greater clarity. David W.
David Breimhurst says
David W.
I wasn’t the only one who came away with what you are now saying was a mistaken interpretation of your remark. Which is why I heartily agree that clarity is key. I have listened to the audio of the comments in question many times searching for clues I may have missed. They may have been there, but I just didn’t see them. All that aside, I’m happy to accept your clarification and understand that your intent, in the end, was fully considered, and that you do not believe that the Accommodations Tax revenue should be used entirely for marketing. And I agree, as well, that we can continue to conduct this campaign at a level of respect for each other that our community deserves.
David B.
Tom Dobbins says
Clearly the authors of the letter got it wrong. Why do people spend more time getting outraged and not enough getting the facts straight? Ironically, David is very approachable and straight forward. They could have talked to him to understand his position on this important issue.
On this issue, not only do our businesses generate a lot of revenue for the town, they make the town fun and interesting. Half the restaurants we enjoy, along with shops and other amenities would be gone without our tourist visitors and the local businesses they help support. And with them would go the value of our properties. So let’s support our local businesses by encouraging tourists to come and enjoy our beautiful town and therefore to reinvest in our town to keep it vibrant.
Eleanor Wells says
The opinion published this morning was disheartening, to say the least. Having heard David Wojciechowski at two candidate’s forums, we firmly believe that has the best interests of THE TOWN at heart. He cares deeply about the residents and the businesses that allow our town to thrive. We hoped when we moved to St. Michaels this kind of vitriol could be avoided. As Mr. Spiegel rightly points out he and the others have every right to create open discourse, even adversarial. This, however, appears as more of a personal attack and is a stunning example of why we need new leadership in St. Michaels. If we had any question about our votes before, we are now firmly in Mr. Wojciechowski’s camp.
David and Patti Wells
George Sass says
After reading the letter to the editor signed by Walda DuPriest, John Novak, Daniel Spiegel and Karen Wald, I’m reminded of Eleanor Roosevelt’s comment, “Great minds discuss ideas, average minds discuss events, small minds discuss people.” David Wojciechowski has been discussing many new and thoughtful ideas about how to better govern our treasured town of St. Michaels. Spending the entire accommodations revenue on advertising is certainly not one of them as clearly testified by those who were in attendance In contrast, the authors of this letter have personally attacked the integrity of my good neighbor with their ignorance and self-interest. Great minds vs. small minds? My bet is on David.
Dan Conway says
It seems to me that the authors are trying to manipulate the fine people of St Michaels through smears and misrepresentations. I don’t think it’s going to work. We’re smarter than that.
Rob and Beth Ryan says
The behavior represented by this “Letter to the Editor” is beneath us. We should all rise to our better selves to engage in healthy and honest debate about the issues of concern, and not devolve into misrepresentations and dissembling commentary, as the authors of this Letter have done.
While we were not at the forum on Wednesday evening, we have attended multiple candidate events and have had an opportunity to hear all of the candidate’s perspectives. In none of those events did Mr. Wojciechowski ever suggest spending our accommodations tax revenue on town promotions. Clearly, the authors have taken something out of context.
To our friends and fellow residents of St. Michaels, let us renounce this type of petty behavior end engage thoughtfully. Come out on Monday night, April 29th from 6-8 pm to the public forum sponsored by the League of Women Voters. We encourage all concerned citizens to attend this forum and hear all candidate responses to important issues facing our town, then decide for yourselves who you want to work with to ensure that St Michaels is a thriving community for residents, business and those who choose to visit our beautiful town.
TC duPont says
First things first. Seems we’re in need of a time out. We are all neighbors and friends looking for safe and peaceful neighborhoods. I too was at the gathering sponcered by the SMBA and didn’t come away with the thought that all the accommodations revenue would be spent on Marketing. Even if that were the case there are several safe guards in place that it would take some serious negotiations to allow that to happen. The St.Michaels tourism board was mentioned and it was this group the concentrated on the St.Michaels brand which we still have today. Businesses are not all created equally but they all operate on basic accounting principles. They are responsible for their advertising and should be backed up be the association. The town is responsible for promoting and maintaining our brand. There was some thinking of recreating that board. At the time the Commissioners alloted tax revenues to the board to spend on marketing. However after several years the Commissioners were of the mindset that appointed boards should not be put in a position of spending taxpayers dollars at which time it collapsed.
While on this subject I am not in favor of a 2% increase in the accommodations tax. As pointed out the lodging industry is currently supporting 20% of the towns operating budget. A 2 centincrease actually represents a 50% increase. It was pointed out that this years budget is showing a 500k surplus so it seems no increases are needed. It also needs to be mentioned that an increase of this amount falls much harder on the small inn’s and cottages then the big ones.
Let’s keep it clean and have open and honest debate.
Karen Douglass says
Question: If the 4 signers did not attend the meeting, who was their reporter at the meeting? Who stands to benefit from this letter?
Ganging up to bully, slander, and distort the facts to smear David’s campaign is truly contradictory to the essence of the lovely life we in St. Michaels hope to create.
The tarnish here is on the mean spirited gang of 4 signers and whoever reported the falsehoods to them.
David W., as a man of integrity, will be an excellent commissioner.
Tricia Slawinski says
As a “newcomer” to St. Michaels I am astonished and saddened to see that our beautiful little town has political machinations worthy of the politicos inside the Washington, D.C. beltway.
Where is the healthy debate and professional courtesy needed to clarify issues via a simple phone call or email to the candidates running for Town Commissioner? Instead, disgruntled constituents resort to the press to muddy the situation and confuse and anger residents of our town. Is this Democracy? I call it unnecessarily stirring the pot.
The initiative to bring forth new and creative ideas adds to healthy and productive discussions and positive change. Let’s not waste time during our Commissioner election on middle school nonsense and finger pointing.
It is time to reset, recharge, and move forward. Leave the nasty politics in D.C.
Tricia Slawinski
Rob Douglass says
Facts – good. Conspiracy theories – bad. Respectful discourse – good. Character assassination – bad. Assuming positive intent – good. Hysterics – bad. Clear articulation of position – good. Incorrect representation – bad. First Amendment – good. Democracy – good. Dirty tricks – bad. Giving our neighbors grace – good. Supporting our amazing town – good. Maximizing resources to improve St. Michaels – good. Thinking creatively – good. Reduce divisions through discourse and compromise – good. Drive wedges to divide and stovepipe – bad. High road – good. Low road – bad. Think – good. Assume – bad. Vote – good. David Wojciechowski – good.
Brian Wroten says
I just wanted to add, I was the candidate talking about the Accommodations Tax the most at the SMBA debate (see Star Democrat article). If anyone deserved to be mischaracterized in their position on the Accommodations Tax it should be me. Mr. Wojciechowski did say a couple sentences about it but predominantly this is my talking point and I would like people to know that I’m not following in Mr. Wojciechowski’s footsteps in any way, shape, or form when I talk about it at the LWV debate on Monday.
Amy Bayer says
I was a political journalist for 15 years, covering the White House and national politics. If I had a question about a candidate’s position or something he or she said at a debate, I’d ask them.
It seems that simple act on the part of original letter writers would have successfully resolved the issue. Instead, they went to press with speculation. It’s worth asking why.