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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- PLAYrnSAFE Commerce Vision Center 1937 Homer Road Commerce, GA 30529 (706) 335-7552 3331 Hamilton Mill Road, Suite 1100* Buford, GA (770) 271-3500 Whatever their game, whatever their age, protect their eyes with protective sports eyewear. www.libertysport.com 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. y/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// t\ SMITH’S TRANSMISSION REPAIR LONE STAR TIRE & LUBE 706-795-0017 SERVICE SPECIAL sf Oil Change Service (5 qt. Castrol GTX) $38.82 sf Transmission Service $98.50 sf A/C Service $69.95 sf Rotate & Balance Tires $36.00 sf Check Brakes $19.50 sf Check Wheel Alignment $32.50 sf Scan Computer for Diagnostic Codes $40.00 THIS WEEK COMBINATION SPECIAL PRICE $149.95 September 15-19 This service applies to most passenger cars & light trucks 1995 & newer. 1300 Hwy. 98 W. Danielsville, GA 30633 DON’T FORGET TO VOTE NOVEMBER 4 Free McCain/Palin Yard Signs to all customers! W////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////Z7