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Former long-time Tullahoma Mayor Lane Curlee has announced he will not seek election to the office he held for many years.

“After careful consideration, I have decided not to seek election to the office of Tullahoma mayor,” Curlee said after being asked about rumors that he was going to get into the mayoral race this summer. “I have never received so much encouragement from so many people to be mayor as I have the past several months. It seems everywhere I go, to the Post Office, the gym, or even the grocery store, people I know and many people I don’t know, would approach me and ask ‘the question’….. ‘Are you going to be mayor again’?  In some cases, that was followed with ‘please’. Of course, others were just curious.”

Curlee said enough is enough when it comes to him and his family being under a microscope which happens in elected office.

“I very much appreciate the encouragement and kind words, but ultimately I need and want to do what is best for my family,” he said. “After 31 years of elected public service, 18 as mayor, I need to respect that it is not easy being the spouse of the mayor or the child of the mayor. They never signed up for the extra scrutiny that comes with being related to the mayor. Also, I served 18 years as mayor. I am confident many people feel enough is enough. Plus, I will be 70 years old next year. To many young people, that is ancient.”

Curlee said he does love serving Tullahoma and has continued his philanthropic work since he has been out of office, helping spearhead initiatives like Reading Buddies which recruited concerned citizens to help in elementary classrooms.

“Let me be clear, however, I loved every day I was mayor and I think it showed. I enjoyed and was challenged to just do good things for the people of Tullahoma. I was so blessed and honored to serve as an elected community leader for so long,” he noted.

The former mayor got down to brass tacks when asked why he has been recruited to run.

“So, why do I think there is so much encouragement for me to be mayor again? Two reasons. First, thanks to the work of many people, much progress was made in Tullahoma during my time as mayor.  Tullahoma was consistently recognized as the #1 Micropolitan City in the state, quality of life improved in many ways, we positioned Tullahoma as a retail, medical and aviation destination, and so much more. Second, call it what you want, but many citizens feel the current Board of Mayor and Aldermen is dysfunctional at best. I hear it every day. Many people are embarrassed. In my lifetime, we have never seen so much self-interest, bickering, misleading, interrupting, pettiness, turmoil, lawsuits flying, and retribution that surround some members of the BMA. I believe many citizens just want to get back to civil, respectful and productive BMA meetings.”

While not running, Curlee has some advice for what is needed for a good mayor.

“So what attributes does a Tullahoma mayor need? In my view, the mayor needs to have a passion and heart for everyone in Tullahoma,” he said. “The mayor needs to have an even temperament, leadership attributes, flexible schedule, be an encourager at community events, and love to make good things happen in Tullahoma.  The mayor needs to run civil and respectful meetings. As mayor I have celebrated when citizens had small and large victories in their lives and I have cried when citizens are hurting. Although the mayor has legal and fiscal responsibilities relative to the city government, the mayor is not the mayor of only ‘city government’.  The city government is but part of the fabric of Tullahoma. The mayor is a community leader for the entire community. There are responsible and hard-working people in city government. Let them do their jobs without micromanagement from elected officials. Another manager in city government is not necessary.”

Curlee said the negativity from the present BoMA is discouraging.

“Although by nature I am a very optimistic person, I am sorry to say I believe the negativity from recent BMA meetings has trickled into citizens’ lives,” he said. “Never before have I seen such lies and assumptions being made and efforts to tear people down on social media. Hopefully, the most recent school board election proves that Tullahoma citizens do not like the negativity and we can get back to civil discourse, even on social media.”

Curlee said he conducted a survey recently to gauge what residents are thinking when it comes to their city leadership.

“In order to gauge what Tullahoma citizens think about their elected community leadership and what issues were important to them, I anonymously mailed a postcard survey to about 10% of Tullahoma homes. About 11% responded, which is considered an excellent response for such a survey. I paid for the printing and postage myself.  I asked, ‘What grade would you give the current BMA’?  Over 70% rated it a D or F. We can and should do better. I also asked who you would like to see as the next mayor of Tullahoma. I was gratified to get 48% of the respondents’ votes, despite having five other choices on the survey. I appreciate everyone’s indication of support and kind words.”

Curlee said he will be glad to assist whoever wins the election Aug. 1.

“I wish the very best for the next mayor and stand ready to assist any way I am asked. If citizens have any comments they are welcome to reach out to me at 931-581-0360 or lcurlee@lighttube.net.”