Granby – It took only 18 signatures to force a recall election of Mayor Ted Wang.
So when Kirk Arnold and a group of collaborators gathered 79 names – one more than voted for Wang when he ran unopposed in 2004 – he figured they may have touched a nerve.
“There are a lot of people who are unhappy with his leadership,” said Arnold, who is running as the only alternative candidate should Wang be recalled Tuesday.
Wang, who rose to prominence after a man’s bulldozer rampage left the town in tatters in 2004, counters that the recall is merely a personal attack by a small number of people, exacerbated by the prism of small-town politics.
“One of the most unfortunate things about this situation is it’s so inflammatory,” he said. “The bottom line in all of this is that there’s a bunch of personal ax-grinding.”
Although many of the petition signatures were thrown out on a technicality, Arnold said many residents feel Wang (pronounced “Wong”) has not been the kind of leader the town needs as it faces monumental growth while downtown businesses are struggling.
“Basically there are a lot of disgruntled business owners,” said Arnold, who owns an insurance company on Agate Avenue, the town’s broad main street. “Some businesspeople in town have never seen the mayor in their businesses until this recall campaign.”
Prone to wonk-ish discussions of policy, Wang is accused of being unapproachable, but not of any malfeasance, midway through his four-year term.
“Under Colorado law, recall elections are a purely political exercise,” he said. “You can literally call a recall if you don’t like the color of shirt that the guy has worn.”
Wang, a former ski patroller and business owner who retired to dedicate his time to the volunteer elected position, said leaders may face stronger passions in small towns than in big cities.
“You probably know more people in a way that you wouldn’t in, say, Denver. I don’t think Mayor Hickenlooper has the same intimacy of contact,” he said.
Wang, 54, recently received a recall-related death threat in a telephone message. He also has had a couple of pieces of campaign literature returned with obscene comments written on them, and ethnic slurs referring to his half-Chinese heritage have been overheard around town.
Members of Citizens for a Better Granby, the recall proponents, have denounced the tactics, which remain under police investigation.
Underlying the recall campaign is the issue of growth: The community of about 1,600 people has quadrupled its land area in the past 2 1/2 years, and annexations now on the books will add nearly 7,000 housing units.
Arnold could not cite specific cases that he would have decided differently from Wang and the nearly unanimous town board, but he suggested that many residents don’t particularly like the direction the town is heading.
Wang notes that much of the current development would have occurred even if the town didn’t annex the land and points to the healthy financial picture as vindication.
Arnold, who once served briefly on the town board and ran unsuccessfully for Grand County commissioner in 2004, said the recall campaign has accelerated his political aspirations and at least has fostered important public discussions.
“I’m not running by default. I really do want to be mayor,” he said. “Regardless of the outcome, we have stimulated some thought processes that involve a lot of good people.”
Staff writer Steve Lipsher can be reached at 970-513-9495 or at slipsher@denverpost.com.
