Friday, July 26, 2002
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Friday, July 26, 2002 |
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Candidates square off at forum By JOHN
THOMPSON
With thunder rolling in the background, more than 100 residents turned out Tuesday night to see if any fireworks would occur at the Peachtree City Rotary Club's Candidate Forum at the Wyndham Hotel. With two County Commission posts up for grabs, many in the crowd were sporting buttons or stickers for their favorite candidates. The commission candidates led off the forum with incumbent Commissioner Linda Wells speaking first. Wells talked about information she learned from a book called "Really Important Stuff My Kids Have Taught Me." One of the lessons is don't swap sandwiches unless you investigate what's between the bread of the other sandwich. Wells talked about the commissioners' accomplishments of increasing the number of public safety officers, building a new 911 system and constructing a new jail and courthouse. She also pointed to the county building Lake Horton and the county's capacity of providing 14 million gallons of water a day. So, before changing commissioners, Wells urged the voters to look at what the other side can offer. One of Wells candidates in the commission race is Caroline Smith. Smith cited her 13 years of experience as a Brooks councilperson and said she wanted to improve the relationship between the cities and county. "I also want to strengthen our land use map," she said. The other candidate in the race is native Fayette Countian Thomas Stephens. Stephens said now is the time for new faces and ideas and said the county government can be more responsible to the people. "I'm full of passion for this community," he said. In the race for Commission Post 1, incumbent Greg Dunn is facing former Fayetteville Mayor Mike Wheat. Dunn said the focus of his tenure has been ethics in government and smart growth management. "There have been no allegations of wrongdoing in my tenure," he said. The commission chairman pointed to a 48 percent in reduction of housing starts and a 44 percent drop in commercial permits. Mike Wheat said he favors a more cooperative spirit between the county and cities and wants to see taxes come down. He would like to see a group formed similar to the old FUTURES committee that would work towards overlapping services in the various governments. Wheat also wants to see impact fees to help pay for the growth. The crowd also heard from candidates for state house and senate races including Emory Wilkerson, who is seeking the State Senate District 34 Post; and John Lunsford and Merrill Massengale, who are seeking the State House, District 85 Post 2 position.
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