Wednesday, June 13, 2001

Fayette County is special. But, any candidate will tell you that. So, I'll explain to you what I mean when I say it.

Let's compare Fayette to other counties in Georgia; top five in per capita income, first in charitable giving and volunteer work, first in SAT scores, lowest for DUI crashes, one of the lowest crime rates in the entire nation. Or, look at property values in the Atlanta area. The highest values are all on the Northside, except for one area, and that's Fayette County.

These are all important measures of a community. But what do the numbers represent? They represent you. Fayette is blessed with a lot of smart, experienced, energetic, terrific people who were either born here or moved here because they liked what they found when they looked for a home. You run the recreation programs and the civic organizations, you're in our churches and businesses, you work in our government and in our schools.

What keeps you here? Nothing but your satisfaction with where you live.

If we allow the ARC or GRTA or the new Metropolitan North Georgia Water District, now being called WETA, to usurp local control and local government, if we allow spot zoning, if we destroy the variety in the county, if we don't work hard to fix the traffic problems or if we fail to focus on public safety programs; police, fire and courts; well, if we mess it up, then you wonderful people who produce all those wonderful statistics will leave. Then, Fayette County will be just another county in the Georgia.

Fayette County didn't become special by accident. We won't keep it special by accident either.

What's at stake, in a little over a week? Twenty percent of the County Commission. Look up in history, how many 3-2 votes have there been that have changed Fayette County for the better, or for the worse?

The theme I have chosen for my campaign is "Proven Leadership." What I hope that says to you is this: Here is a person who has been involved, in leadership, in the community, for a dozen years. Here is a person who has a proven track record that we can look at and see how he handled himself. Here is a person who I want as 20 percent of my County Commission.

I ask you for your vote. I simply believe that at this time, I am the most qualified and proven candidate to keep Fayette special.

Peter Pfeifer

Peachtree City

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