Newspaper Page Text
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2008
THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS
PACE 3A
Q&A with the Baldwin mayor candidates
Mark Reed
Please summarize your back
ground.
I am a native of Habersham
County, the second son of James
and Lillian Reed. After gradu
ating from Habersham Central
High School in 1978,1 attended
Mercer University in Macon. In
1980.1 joined the United States
Navy and was trained as a Nu
clear Electrician. I served aboard
the USS Sturgeon (SSN-637)
stationed in Charleston, South
Carolina. I completed my Bach
elor’s Degree in Sociology while
in the Navy.
In 1988,1 returned home and
took a job with The State of
Georgia Department of Children
and Youth Services and later with
Lee Arrendale State Prison as a
Senior Corrections Counselor. In
1991.1 enlisted in the US Naval
Reserve, after the first Gulf War.
In 1995,1 was elected Mayor of
Baldwin after serving as chair
man of the planning commission
for about two years. In 2000, I
suffered a severely broken leg
while helping pull a police car
out of a ditch during an ice storm.
Later that year, my young son
was diagnosed with Cancer.
I have been a member of the
Habersham-White-Stephens
Board of Realtors since 2002
and am currently employed with
Land Specialties Realty. I have
been Chairman of the Haber
sham County Relay for Life
since 2004.
How has your background
prepared you for the seat you
are seeking?
One of my deepest core val
ues has been - service to others.
Service to God, service to family,
service to country, and service to
my community. As a native of
this area, I share a sense of history
and community with my neigh
bors and have seen, first hand, the
changes that have occurred here
over the last 40 years. I under
stand that open communication
and open debate are the corner
stones of our democracy and that
elected leaders should serve the
people and not the government or
themselves.
My experience as Mayor has
taught me that, although I may
have little say or control over the
actions of the Council, I must
continue to listen to and advo
cate for the citizens, residents and
taxpayers who feel they have no
voice at all.
I am the most qualified person
for this position because I have
been Mayor since 1995.1 under
stand what it takes to represent all
the people, not just the ones that
look like me or agree with me.
I am familiar with all aspects of
the government and know what
changes need to take place to
make Baldwin work better for
the people, not just the city. I have
completed more than 120 hours
of training provided by the Carl
Vinson Institute of Government
and have received the Certificate
of Excellence in training from the
Georgia Municipal Association. I
have served on various state and
regional boards and committees
including the Board of Directors
of the GMA. As Mayor, I have
evaluated and executed several
economic development projects
in the City and have received
more than $2,000,000 in grants
since 2000 for those projects.
What do you consider the key
issues facing the campaign?
REED
If elected, what would be your
plans on how to address these
issues?
The key issue facing the city
in this campaign is reigning in
the uncontrolled spending by the
city council and growth of the
government. The answer to all
our problems is not to buy more
equipment and hire more people.
The City of Baldwin is not an em
ployment agency. A fundamental
change in the way we do things
in Baldwin is crucial. That is why
I feel we must cut the budget to
the bone. Lay off some person
nel temporarily, freeze spend
ing on vehicles and equipment,
eliminate some frills and try to do
more with less for a change.
We should consider hiring a full
time, qualified, professional city
manager to help take the politics
out of the day to day operation of
the city and provide more central
ized control of the city’s spending
policies. The manager should be
accountable to the council, but be
able to act independently without
constant interference and micro-
managing by the council.
Another key issue is one that
has been on the minds of the citi
zens for years. We must change
the way we elect our council
members to make sure that a con
centration of power is not held in
one neighborhood or one family.
A change in the city charter to set
up wards or districts that candi
dates have to five in would en
sure a fairer representation of the
citizens of Baldwin. And while
we are at it, why not eliminate
the elected position of mayor.
Five commissioners or council
members with equal voting rights
should be enough. (The mayor
doesn’t get to vote under our cur
rent system.)
What course would you like to
see the town take as it grows over
the rest of the decade?
Baldwin is a great town and
has a lot going for it. Our location
between two major highways is
ideal for commercial develop
ment. We have a wide variety
of housing options available for
a stable, healthy and qualified
work force.
I would like to see more rede
velopment downtown to show
case our historical buildings.
Expansion of the Industrial Park
with high quality, clean indus
try. Commercial development
with restaurants and hotels along
the 441 and 365 corridors. And
more recreational opportunities
such as hiking and biking trails
in and along the old railroad bed
and Baldwin Falls area. I want
Baldwin to be a place that every
one can be proud to call home. A
place that you can five work and
play without the hassles of big
city life.
Mike Kelly
Please summarize your back
ground.
I am currently a small business
owner and partner in Kelley Asset
Protection & Investments, LLC.
We provide investment advice
to businesses and individuals. I
have been a licensed stock broker
since 1997.1 am also currently an
Army Reservist serving in an In
dividual Military Augmentation
(IMA) position as a Civil Affairs
Officer. My current orders have
me assigned as an instructor at Ft.
Bragg, N.C., teaching Civil Af
fairs Officers and NCOs.
Shortly after September 11,
2001,1 was recalled to active duty
and served continuously for over
two years at Special Operations
Command Europe (SOCEUR).
My accomplishments on ac
tive duty included attending the
Level II Anti-terrorism Course to
become the only Level n quali
fied officer on staff. I attended
Military Jump School at Ft. Ben-
ning, Ga., at the tender age of 46
to meet mission requirements
and demonstrate leadership to
my younger peers. I attended the
NATO Civil Emergency Military
Planning & Military Cooperation
Course. I plan to retire from the
Army Reserve in the near future.
I am currently attending the
Georgia Academy for Economic
Development. I’ve been a resi
dent of the City of Baldwin since
2000. My wife, Victoria, and
I have five children and three
grandchildren. My website is:
www.mikekelleyformayor.com
How has your background
prepared you for the seat you
are seeking?
My past experience, education
and training has encompassed all
the functional areas required to
successfully lead and run a gov
ernment. We need steady consis
tent leadership that will answer
the call to protect our citizen’s
best interests.
Insight into what Civil Af
fairs Officers typically do can
be found at the web link, http://
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_
Affairs#U S_Military_Civil_Af-
fairs.
Why are you the most quali
fied person for this position?
As a business owner in the fi
nancial services industry, I have
many years experience in finan
cial planning. In my military ca
reer, I have dealt with most of the
problems facing Baldwin today
such as infrastructure and public
safety issues. I have experience
at successfully balancing multi
million dollar budgets.
I want to be Mayor of Baldwin
because I care enough about our
community and our quality of fife
to be a leader in protecting the in
terests of the citizens of Baldwin.
What do you consider the key
issues facing the campaign? If
elected, what would be your
plans on how to address these
issues?
We first need to stop spending
more than the income generated
by the city.
We need to carefully consider
all current expenditures and make
cuts where needed.
All expenditures, currently be
ing funded, need to be put under
scrutiny. Cuts should be made
where the best interests of our city
are not being considered first. We
need to restore confidence in our
local government by conducting
ourselves professionally.
Much of the day to day func-
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KELLY
tioning of Baldwin can and
should be done by a professional
city manager. I have the experi
ence and skills necessary to rebal
ance the current budget in order
to hire such a qualified individual.
Next we may have to change the
city charter to allow for a city
manager and give them appropri
ate power to conduct business for
the city. The current situation has
been years in the making and can
not be changed overnight. The
hiring process warrants taking
the time to hire someone who is
not cutting their managerial teeth
on our city. We need to look for
an individual with both maturity
of experience and professional
demeanor. They should conduct
themselves to the standard put
forth by Judge Putnam in 1830
and commonly known as “The
Prudent Man Rule’’.
What course would you like to
see the town take as it grows over
the next decade?
The Department of Commu
nity Affairs (DCA) has complet
ed the Final Draft, “Conceptual
Plans for Downtown Baldwin.’’
The Final Draft is the result of
their survey of both Cornelia
and Baldwin residents. Work
ing within their limited scope
the document produced is defi
cient. That is not intended to be
negative but simply to indicate
we have additional work to be
accomplished before we final
ize the plan. I recommend we
form a committee consisting of
current residents to build out the
draft plan. We have the bones of
a plan, but we need people with
a vested interest in the commu
nity to walk our streets and hang
the flesh and skin of reality over
the work that has been started.
Working with our neighbors we
should complete the plan and
submit it prior to the 9 October
2009 deadline.
A capital expenditure budget
needs to be developed first for
next year, then three years and
finally five years. We need to
stick to our budget.
The greatest journey starts
with a single step, I encourage
you to walk with me a while.
I ask for your vote on Septem
ber 16. God Bless our city, our
country and all the men and
women who protect us each and
every day.
Jerry Neace
Please summarize your back
ground.
My general background has
either been the military or in gov
ernment. Since 1988 until 2004,1
was involved in the military either
active duty or National Guard.
Since 1992, I have worked for
various government agencies.
I moved to Georgia in 1994
and began a career in corrections.
I have worked for Hall County
for the last 13 years in various
departments.
In 2006, I graduated with my
Bachelor’s degree in Business
Administration with concentra
tions in Management and HRM.
In 2007, I graduated with my
M.B.A. in Managerial Leader
ship. I am currently attending
classes at NGCSU for a Master’s
in Public Administration.
While going to college, work
ing full time, and being a member
of the Georgia National Guard, I
was a single parent raising a son.
How has your background
prepared you for the seat you
are seeking?
My education and experience
has given me knowledge in how
to treat people fairly and honestly.
It has also shown me where to
look for waste and abuse. I can’t
think of anything more waste
ful or abusive than the military. I
have learned over the years how
different departments function
within a municipal government.
I also have learned that poor plan
ning leads to poor spending. My
experience has also taught me to
be flexible as an individual and
as a leader. Things never go as
planned and sometimes you just
have to deal with what you are
given to get the job done.
Why are you the most quali
fied candidate?
I am the most qualified candi
date for two reasons. First, I have
experience in working for gov
ernment agencies, especially lo
cal governments. My education
I feel is paramount. In this day
and time, education is becoming
more important than ever before.
Second, I am new. I am fresh
with fresh ideas that I feel will
better enhance the community
if given the opportunity. I don’t
have the woulda, coulda, shoulda
syndrome.
What do you consider the key
issues facing the campaign? If
elected, what would be your plan
on how to address these issues?
Baldwin has many issues. I
will focus on the three that I feel
are the most important. These
three will have a positive effect
on most of the others.
The first one is the budget. I
would require that all depart
ment heads set their budget by
the guidelines as set by the coun
cil. There would be no budget
amendments unless in the case
of an emergency. I know that
department heads have to run a
department but they also need
to consider who is paying for it
all, the taxpayer. All SPLOST
NEACE
spending would be done after
the funds have been received. I
would work with the council to
find ways to cut more from the
budget. Every agency in the state
is having revenue shortfalls of
some type. They are cutting their
budgets significantly. The coun
cil has cut some but needs to cut
more.
The second is economic de
velopment. I feel this is essential
for revenue growth as well as job
growth. With economic develop
ment, also come improved prop
erty value. Baldwin is behind in
this area. We need to attract new
and diverse businesses into the
city. Upon being elected, I would
begin a campaign of contacting
companies advertising Baldwin’s
strengths and abilities as a place
for them to consider for their next
place of business.
The third is fixing up down
town. It needs to be redeveloped.
The city has been working with
the DCA to improve the down
town areas appearance. It would
look very much like Cornelia and
Clarkesville, which have turned
out to be very nice and appeal
ing. I feel that when the town
looks good the people feel good
and have pride in where they live.
I feel the city needs to set the ex
ample for its citizens and its busi
nesses.
With fiscal responsibility,
economic development, and im
proved public persona, Baldwin
can only do one thing; become
great.
What course would you like to
see the town take as it grows over
the next decade?
I would like to see Baldwin be
come an economic force for north
Banks County and for south Hab
ersham County. I want people to
have the ability to work where
they five and live where they
work without having to commute
great distances. Clarkesville has
the Square, Cornelia has the Big
Red Apple, and Demorest has
Piedmont College; I want Bald
win to have the jobs. With hard
work and planning, this can hap
pen.
Editor's note: Baldwin mayor
candidate Tom Loudermilkdid
not respond to the question
naire sent out by Tl:e Banks
County News.
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