Candidate Teti Hopes to Lead Kensington to the Future with Development Expertise

Stowe Lock Teti, a 10-year Kensington resident, is vying for a seat on the Kensington Town Council. If elected, Teti hopes to use his expertise as a development consultant to protect and improve the town once the sector plan is approved.

Patch asked Teti questions to learn more about his campaign and plans for Kensington if elected.

Kensington Patch: How long have you been a resident of Kensington?

Stowe Locke Teti: 10 years.

KP: What inspired you to run for town council?  

SLT: Protecting our past while moving productively into the 21st century inspired me to run. To quote George Santayana, I believe that, “To be an American is an education, a moral condition, and a career.” For the past 10 years I have made my living as the CEO of a consulting firm in the development and business community; my firm specialized in regulatory policy and project negotiations, educating and assisting clients ranging from individual business owners to multi-national corporate teams. My firm worked to bring their projects to successful conclusions, in harmony with their environments; most of our projects in the past five years were LEED Gold or Platinum- designations carefully monitored by the U.S. Green Building Council.  In whatever form the Sector Plan is finally approved, I believe my skills and experience are needed by business owners, residents, and developers.

KP: What goals would you like to achieve while on the council?

SLT: If elected, I would like to proceed on three fronts:

1) Once passed, the sector plan will bring the potential for many benefits to Kensington, but also many challenges. My 10-year tenure as the CEO of a development consulting firm enables me to work on both protecting and improving Kensington; it’s not a matter of one or the other. I possess a number of qualities and experiences from which Kensington can benefit: broad expertise in development issues, a profound respect of history, and 20 years of experience as an entrepreneur.  This range of knowledge enables me to work with all parties to the past debate; however, more is needed to move Kensington forward. Kensington's growth cannot be robust if we continue to stand divided; consensus must be built. My skills as a communicator and negotiator, in concert with my more technical skills, can benefit the level of dialog that goes on between residents and councilmembers with differing opinions.

2) This leads into the second front I will proceed on. It is unfortunate the innuendo, half-truths, and the casting of aspersions are so much a part of politics today. It doesn’t have to be that way, especially in a small town. Having been trained as a logician and a philosopher, I believe in reasoned discussions where facts are cited, and all voices are equal; wisdom should prevail over title or office. I strongly believe the overarching misunderstanding regarding the sector plan resulted from the fallacy of the excluded middle; forcing a debate into strict "for" or "against" terms, when most people's beliefs usually reside on middle, moderate grounds. We have all seen this in national and state politics. We can do better, using basic principles of rational dialogue and debate to see one-another's views for what they are. There are very few issues over which it is impossible for intelligent people to disagree

3) The third front I wish to address is the protection of resident’s rights. While many were split on the issue of the 15-day vote amendment, the missing aspect of the debate was the imprecision in what should have been a precise legal document. For example, how many residents know that there is no time limit by which Amendments must be voted on? Previously, votes had to occur within 60 days of the amendment’s introduction, so that the vote occurred when the issue was immediate in resident’s minds. By use of the new adjournment clause, residents cannot know when any amendment will be voted on, or, in fact, even where! I urge you to Google "adjournment;" it has a very specific meaning, of which many people are not aware. It is not a matter of whether or not the Council intends to use the new adjournment powers; as a matter of principle, those powers should not be available to them.

KP: What issues concern you about Kensington? How will you address them?

SLT:  To lead Kensington into the future, the following issues must be addressed: Intelligent growth of Kensington, at an appropriate rate and scale; no candidate matches my skills, knowledge or experience in the area of development. Transparency of government is a major concern of mine. Kensington has been divided over questions of character and leadership in recent years; the only way to avoid this is to pass legislation requiring all processes to be as transparent as glass.  I will work to build consensus, an inclusive process that benefits from public involvement. The recently proposed Amendment to eliminate residents right to referendum is undemocratic. Of course we still have the power of the vote, but only by representative democracy; direct democracy, aka, referendum, is a precious commodity worth fighting for. As a side note; if elected, I will not accept endorsements from the Mayor or any other councilmember; such practices are antithetical to balanced representation. If the mayor and council move in lock step, the checks and balances necessary for fair and open governance are nullified.  Therefore I would move to make such endorsements a matter of person, not the office he or she may hold. In other words, a Mayor or a councilmember may endorse a candidate, speaking for themselves, but not representing the office they hold.

KP: Why should a resident vote for you?

SLT: Professionally: 11 years ago I co-founded my second entrepreneurial venture in 20 years, AiP Inc. My firm quickly became an important knowledge base for developers, contractors, property owners, and project management firms, consulting on over $1.5 billion of new construction and renovation in the Greater D.C. Metro Area and Montgomery County  During that time I worked as an intermediary between policy makers, developers, and residents, so I understand all points of view very thoroughly. I have the skills to market Kensington to the best the development community has to offer, the experience to negotiate with the biggest development interests on an equal footing, and the knowledge to know what development interests need, what compromises are reasonable and what options exist to keep good projects moving forward.

Prior to my career in development consulting, I founded Studies in Wood, Inc., a limited-production and custom furniture-making business. I worked with a number of restaurants, service providers, residential clients and galleries over the years. I developed multiple competitive means of production for fine furniture. I have a love for fine craftsmanship, and even greater love for trees. When I am working on a piece of furniture I remain mindful where the raw materials came from, which inspires me to build things that last for generations. At the same time, I had to make a living, so I appreciate the complications of small businesses, recently under attack more than ever. I worked with scores of businesses as a furniture maker, and hundreds of projects as a development consultant. I know not only what pressures bear upon businesses both large and small, but also the broader context of how they fit into a community, and what processes are required to actually build that new office, restaurant, store, or any combination of the three.

Personally: I recently taught two seminars on Ethical Theories at St. Mary’s College.  The invitation was extended due to my recent work on the ethical theory of Adam Smith, the famous economist. I am a member of the Children’s National Hospital Bioethics Committee. We meet to hear and discuss pressing ethical issues doctors are facing. Because the doctors and nurses that come before us are seeking help with actual patients, typically facing life-altering or ending circumstances, we press our minds to their limits, working through every permutation of care conceivable, to find the Good; that which is moral, often when there is no right answer. The power of these meetings is grounding; as hard as it is to do, for me it is simply a calling. It puts life in perspective. I will bring this same insight, work ethic, and personal character to the Town Council.  

I spend my free time with my wife, Diana, and my Daughter, Saige. I also spend time training my collection of Japanese Maples, reading and collecting books, and whenever I have the time, designing and building furniture. I have developed several courses on furniture-making I hope to begin teaching in the near future.

Philosophically: All internal affairs of government are reducible to a choice between the rights of the group and the rights of the individual. I am the son of a Professor of American History, and like my father, I am a Jeffersonian. Part of that means I am both an idealist and a pragmatist; I will work to make possible the best ideas, but when necessary, make the best of the ideas that are possible. I believe all knowledge is fallible; No one has a corner on Truth. I believe the best test of truth is that which becomes accepted in the marketplace of freely exchanged ideas. These ideas, the people who first said them, and the unique circumstances surrounding them used to be referred to as Americana. It's a good word.

KP: What's your favorite part of being a Kensingtonian?

SLT: Kensington is like a small college town. It is small enough that a person can easily meet many people, but large enough that there are always new connections to be made. This social atmosphere is set upon a historic backdrop we can all take pride in. These types of things unite us, and in so doing, create a community greater than the sum of its parts. My wife and I have been privileged to be able to raise our daughter Saige, now 9 years old, in Kensington. She sees this as her town, and I couldn't be more proud.

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