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About Jackson herald. (Jefferson, Jackson County, Ga.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (May 31, 2023)
WEDNESDAY, MAY 31, 2023 THE JACKSON HERALD PAGE 5A Meet the Candidates Candidates for Pendergrass City Council Post 1 Josh Auten Gabriel Gomez William Ellis WHAT IN YOUR BACKGROUND MAKES YOU QUALIFIED FOR THIS POSITION? I have served on the board of my church. I work in accounting and finance at my company. I am easily approachable and can talk to anyone. HOW DO YOU THINK PENDERGRASS’ GROWTH SHOULD BE MANAGED IN THE COMING YEARS? Growth is coming not just to Pendergrass, but to the West Jackson county area. Our focus should be on infrastructure and making Pendergrass a safe com munity. Working with develop ers on private land sales to de sign guidelines and impact fees should be the way to address the growth. Would like to see more commercial than residential and industrial/warehouse growth. WHAT ARE THE TOP THREE ISSUES FACING PENDERGRASS IN THE NEXT 10 YEARS? IF ELECTED, HOW WOULD YOU ADDRESS THESE ISSUES? 1. Public Safety - Current ly the police department is not staffed 24/7 and the city gets turned over to the Jackson Coun ty Sheriff’s Office after mid night. Work to budget for a fully staffed police department. 2. Traffic - With new devel opments the roads are seeing increased traffic. Work with our State Representatives to get some form of traffic mitigation on SR 332 to avoid an increase in traffic accidents. 3. Lack of Restaurants/Retail — The new development across Josh Auten from city hall will have commer cial space. I would like to see more commercial space to help decrease the tax burden of resi dents. Pendergrass in its history used to have several areas for commercial enterprises, I would like to see more of that. PLEASE PROVIDE A BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF YOURSELF. I was bom and raised in Char lotte, N.C. I attend North Caroli na State University with a degree in textile technology. For the past 17 years I have worked in the accounting and finance depart ment of Rentokil Terminix do ing a variety of jobs. I moved to Georgia in 2012 where I married my wife, we have 2 boys (5 and 9). We moved to Pendergrass in 2021 and have become active in the community my wife teach es at Gum Springs Elementary School, the boys are active in rec sports (baseball, basketball and football). I have developed relationships with people in our neighborhood and members of the city council. I am proud to live and Pendergrass and would like to do more to shape the city into what I believe it can be in the future. WHAT IN YOUR BACKGROUND MAKES YOU QUALIFIED FOR THIS POSITION? I currently ran a successful insurance and risk management agency in Gwinnett County and have been in business since 2004. I specialize in property and casu alty, life and health, as well as extensive experience in commercial insurance/risk management. I have dealt with all aspects of mnning a business from accounting, payroll, management, income and ex penses, etc. HOW DO YOU THINK PENDERGRASS’ GROWTH SHOULD BE MANAGED IN THE COMING YEARS? I think Pendergrass’ growth should be slowed down over the next coming years to give time to address the city's infra structure demands. If the City of Pender grass grows too quickly, its infrastructure (roads, public utilities, schools) may not be able to keep up with the demands of a rapidly expanding population. WHAT ARE THE TOP THREE ISSUES FACING PENDERGRASS IN THE NEXT 10 YEARS? IF ELECTED, HOW WOULD YOU ADDRESS THESE ISSUES? Growth — If the City of Pendergrass grows too quickly, its infrastructure such as roads, sewage, and water systems may not be able to keep up with the demands of rapid growth which can lead to traffic congestion, water shortages and power outages. With growth, the cost of home- ownership goes up which will make it hard for low income residents to afford housing leading to displacement reducing diversity in the community. Infrastructure —We must prioritize in frastructure projects and allocate funding accordingly by working with government officials, residents in the community and community leaders to determine what projects are most critical to the City Of Pendergrass. Gabriel Gomez Police/Fire — I believe we need to increase funding for Police and Fire Department in the City Of Pendergrass. We need to make sure these departments have the appropriate staff, resources, and equipment to do their job accordingly here in the City Of Pendergrass. This would include hiring more police and firefighters as well as investing in training and development of current staff. PLEASE PROVIDE A BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF YOURSELF. Gabriel Gomez resident of Pendergrass married to Mary Gomez. Together, they have three teenagers Gabriel Gomez Jr., Bianca Gomez and Natalia Gomez. Ga briel has been a licensed insurance agent for 22 years and owns a successful insur ance agency in the city of Lawrenceville. Gabriel attended grades K-12 in Dekalb County, and college at University Of North Georgia in Hall County. Gabriel has volunteered or has given contribu tions to the Boys & Girls Club, Habitat for Humanity, Atlanta Food Bank, Jack- son County High School Dance, Jackson County High School Key Club, Jackson County High School Color Guard and is a member of the Gwinnett Chamber Of Commerce, Georgia Hispanic Chamber Of Commerce and National Association Of Realtors. WHAT IN YOUR BACKGROUND MAKES YOU QUALIFIED FOR THIS POSITION? I’ve been a 20-year resident of Pender grass and try to stay informed of current news and issues in the city and county. HOW DO YOU THINK PENDERGRASS’ GROWTH SHOULD BE MANAGED IN THE COMING YEARS? Growth should take into consider ation available infra structure, land use and existing resident concerns. WHAT ARE THE TOP THREE ISSUES FACING PENDERGRASS IN THE NEXT 10 YEARS? IF ELECTED, HOW WOULD YOU ADDRESS THESE ISSUES? 1. Housing — Vote for responsible de velopment with citi zen input 2. Infrastructure — Provide necessary and responsible ser vices, ie proper street lighting, street main tenance, park and recreation areas, traf fic control measures William Ellis 3. Relationships — Work to improve Pendergrass relations with county, state, other local govern ments and press, which have been strained over the past decades PLEASE PROVIDE A BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF YOURSELF. I’ve been a resi dent of Georgia for 24 years, moving to Gwinnett from Phila delphia suburbs. I’ve been married 50 years with three married grown chil dren (two live out of state) and six young grandchildren. Retired from com mercial door and hardware industry in 2020. Moved to Pend ergrass 20 years ago from Dacula. Candidates for Pendergrass City Council Post 6 Debra Fermin Crystal Hendrix WHAT IN YOUR BACKGROUND MAKES YOU QUALIFIED FOR THIS POSITION? I have worked in the legal field for thirty years and I am a trained mediator in conflict resolution. Currently, I also serve as the Vice-President on the Brooks Village HOA Board of Directors. In addi tion, I am honest in both my actions and being intellectual ly honest with my approach to issues; balanced and can work well with anyone; committed to doing the job right with a significant dedication of time and energy; and, motivated to perform my duties with integ rity and with a broader vision of what is in the best interests of the overall community now and in the future. The best quality that I fell I possess is that I am not a pol itician. I am just a resident of Pendergrass that wants Pen dergrass to be seen as a great place to live - which it is! HOW DO YOU THINK PENDERGRASS’ GROWTH SHOULD BE MANAGED IN THE COMING YEARS? I think Pendergrass’ growth should be managed with trans parency and care. Pendergrass is growing fast with all of the new developments being built along with the large amount of business warehouses. Along with growth comes the need for checks and balances. The residents have a right to be in formed of all that is transpir ing with the growth of our city. WHAT ARE THE TOP THREE ISSUES FACING PENDERGRASS IN THE NEXT 10 YEARS? IF ELECTED, HOW WOULD YOU ADDRESS THESE ISSUES? 1. Growth - With growth come additional residents; traffic flow; and the need for paid fire department staff and EMS - I would looks at the current goals and help institute a hiring campaign for quality residents to fill the needs. 2. Money - With growth will come the need generate revenue to be able to compen sate the emergency staff that is needed to keep our residents safe and secure. I would look at the possibilities of how to generate this needed revenue prior to doing the obvious (which is raising taxes). 3. Transparency - Develop ment needs to be more widely published to gain resident in terest. I would utilize social media platforms to reach a broader audience. I do not have all of the an swers to the “how.” It is about stepping in to the position if I am elected and gaining the knowledge to blueprints that are currently in existence. Only then can progress be made when we have a full council. City of Commerce “NOTICE OF BUDGET ADOPTION” The Fiscal Year 2024 budget will be considered for approval and a budget resolution adopted on Mon day, June 19th, 2023 at 6:00 P. M. The meeting will take place in the “Commerce Room” of the Com merce Civic Center located at 110 State Street, Commerce, Georgia 30529. Debra Fermin PLEASE PROVIDE A BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF YOURSELF. Hello. My name is Dr. Debra L. Fermin, D.M. (Debi). I am a wife to a wonderful husband of 18 years, a mother to 5 grown children and a grandmother to 1 granddaughter. I hold a bachelors in criminal justice, a masters in criminal justice, a masters in conflict resolution and a doctorate of management in organizational leadership. I am a United States Army Vet eran, and a resident of Brooks Village. If you have ever been to Brooks Village around Hal loween, you would definitely remember my house! I have been a stunt/character actor at Netherworld Haunted House for the last 8 years and I cur rently work in insurance de fense litigation. I am a tell-it- like-it-is kind of gal and just want to make a difference for the better. I am not afraid of any question. I am an open book so please just ask! WHAT IN YOUR BACKGROUND MAKES YOU QUALIFIED FOR THIS POSITION? I have worked in coun ty government for 15 years where I served in the court system. I have worked with judges, district attorneys, civil and criminal attorneys, different law enforcement agencies, various elected officials and the general public. I have always had a passion and willingness to serve others. I have a bach elor's degree from Mercer University in social science with my major in criminal justice. I also have an asso ciate’s degree in radiolog ic technology from Lanier Technical College. HOW DO YOU THINK PENDERGRASS’ GROWTH SHOULD BE MANAGED IN THE COMING YEARS? The growth of Pender grass will best be managed through communication be tween local, county and state officials. Growth affects the community in diverse ways and to ensure that growth, we should make sure our infrastructure can handle the growth. We must build positive relationships with other local, county and state officials and work together for the betterment of our community. WHAT ARE THE TOP THREE ISSUES FACING PENDERGRASS IN THE NEXT 10 YEARS? IF ELECTED, HOW WOULD YOU ADDRESS THESE ISSUES? 1. Transparency in local government — If elected, I will be an advocate for the people. I will inform resi dents of proposed issues and changes within our city. I will be available for people to discuss their concerns and issues. I will be the voice of the people. 2. Growth — If elected, I would like to propose the establishment of commit tees to involve the commu nity and other government officials on the needs of our community. 3. Infrastructure — If elected, I would support a stand alone police depart ment, fire department, EMS services, schools, parks, etc. I would advocate strongly for these services so that our community residents can have access to those re sources. Crystal Hendrix PLEASE PROVIDE A BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF YOURSELF. My husband and I have been residents and home- owners in Pendergrass since 2019. We, along with our daughter, attend Free Chapel in Braselton. I serve on the Greet Team and First Im pressions Team at church. I was a deputy clerk for Rock dale County for 15 years and pursued my degree in Crim inal Justice. I then decided to pursue a job in healthcare so I went back to school and earned my degree in ra diologic technology. I have been working in healthcare now for 7 years. I enjoy spending time with my fam ily any chance I get. I love my community and I love living here in Pendergrass. I look forward to serving the community of Pendergrass. Finance Commerce City Schools is seeding a System Finance Director. If interested, please contact Dr. Joy Tolbert at 706-B5-5500.
