The Gordon Gazette contacted all candidates in the CONTESTED races in Calhoun, Fairmount, Resaca and for the Gordon County Board of Commissioners Special Election this week for information on their platforms for office this election season. Those that returned their questionnaire by the Friday afternoon, Oct. 13 deadline are featured.

CITY OF CALHOUN MAYOR

JAMES 'JIMMY' PALMER (I)

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BIO OF CANDIDATE:
I am a lifelong resident of Calhoun. I attended Calhoun City Schools and graduated from Calhoun High School. I then attended the University of Georgia, and graduated from the UGA School of Pharmacy. After graduation, I returned to Calhoun to work at a family owned business (Palmer Drug Company) in downtown Calhoun with my father, and later with my daughter before selling in 2005. 

I am married to Darlene and we have four children and six grandchildren. They all have returned to Calhoun to live and raise their families. I am an active member of Calhoun Fire Baptist Church.

I served five years on the School Board. I have been and remain a strong supporter of Calhoun City Schools and its programs. I think this is very important because of the partnership that must exist between the City and the City Schools. Today we have good communication and cooperation that helps this partnership grow.

I also served five years on the City Council. The experience was very helpful to me in preparing for my current position as Mayor. I learned a lot as we worked through five budget years and have a thorough understanding of our many departments needs and plans for the future. I also currently serve on the Georgia Municipal Association Employee Benefit Board.

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REASON CANDIDATE IS SEEKING OFFICE: 
I am running because I care about Calhoun, its citizens, and our employees. I would like to give back to the community that has been so good to me, and that I call home. I will work to continue the improvements that make Calhoun a great place to live, work and play. I believe experience matters, and I would like to see the progress continue.

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WHAT DO YOU LOVE ABOUT THE COMMUNITY?
I like the small town atmosphere we have in Calhoun, and knowing that it is a great place to raise a family. We have had major quality of life improvements in the past few years and the Downtown Development Authority continues to work to create a business friendly community, and are working to bring more opportunities and activities to downtown.
   
WHAT ISSUES DO YOU WANT TO ADDRESS?
I am concerned about the rapid growth and how to meet the challenges it brings. I am concerned about how this growth impacts our schools, and how to keep our community safe with no increase in crime. We need to do projects to address traffic and congestion. The City and County are working together and have transportation projects on the SPLOST which is infrastructure heavy.  I would like to continue with projects that benefit the whole community. We need to invest in the city workforce and its infrastructure with quality of life improvements and public safety upgrades.

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WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO IMPLEMENT?
I believe it takes teamwork to make a city successful. Today we have excellent cooperation and teamwork within the City. This is between the council, staff and department heads. We have work sessions, planning sessions, and work with each department as we go through the budget process. We have a very detailed budget process that helps with short-term and long range planning, with updates each budget year. We also have five and ten year updates to our comprehensive plan that help with long range planning and progress updates.  We have also started quarterly department head meetings. This brings all departments together, and they share information about their department, providing a better opportunity to work together, benefiting each department. 
We also partner with the Chamber of Commerce and the Industrial Development Authority, and we work closely to provide economic development for all of Gordon County. When I first became Mayor, I had a goal of establishing a good working relationship between the City and County governments, which was non-existing at the time. I think there are many benefits to each government when they can work together. Today I’m proud to say, I believe it is one of the best working relationships in the state. We meet and talk regularly, and have worked together on several projects. We just completed a joint project on a 10 year update to the comprehensive plan. We had several meetings along with community input. The plan had updates to the future land use map along with updating the next five year work program. If successful in the next SPLOST, we have joint projects that include transportation improvements in some of our most congested areas.

Our utilities are another strong part of the city. They are the economic engine that drives industrial, residential and commercial development. It is a slow but continual process to improve capacity and expand services. Today we are very fortunate to be the only place in the state expected to have capacity in water, power and sewer to last the next 50 years, and our water and sewer rates remain in the bottom 20% of all utilities in the state.  We have been named by realty.com as number seven on a list of the best cities in Georgia, and earlier as number four for the best place to raise a family by niche.com. We are also ranked in the top five percent of the safest cities in Georgia. Something else that sets our city apart is having one of the lowest millage rates in the state. There are 28 cities with a population approximately our size. Their average millage rate is 9.1 and in Calhoun it is 3.2. This means that property taxes in Calhoun are one-third of what they would be in other cities with the same population.

If re-elected, I will continue with the mission of providing our community with customer-focused public services, while maintaining sound fiscal stewardship, and encouraging high-quality growth with a goal of maintaining our small town quality of life.

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BRUCE POTTS

BIO OF CANDIDATE:
I am a graduate of Calhoun High school, Class of 1983 and attended Carson-Newman College on an athletic scholarship and student service stipend. I have served as a public-school educator for 31.5 years and a total of 22 years of service to the community. I started teaching at Gordon Central in 1989.  As an administrator, I was an assistant principal at Calhoun High School and principal at Sonoraville High School before retiring five years ago. I am an active member of Rockbridge Community Church- Calhoun. We speak regularly that we are to, “Love God, Love Others, and Live Sent.”  Seeking service in this role fulfils the role of “living sent.” We are to be servants and have servant hearts for those in our community. I wish to work for the best interests of everyone in our community and fulfill the calling to be a Christ-follower in this process. I intend to always serve others above myself. I have an insight into all our service providers in the city and county through my career and life experiences. I pledge to bring a record of proven leadership from my professional life that brings a philosophy of teamwork, ideas and collegial thought to the problems currently face and will face in the future.

At 59 years of age and semi-retired, this is the place my family established roots three generations ago. Calhoun and Gordon County is home to my family and will be home until my last days of life. I have prayed to always be of service to others and for me to be an instrument used to influence and assist anyone in our community. 

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REASON CANDIDATE IS SEEKING OFFICE: 
The last 10 to 12 months, the role of mayor has been something that keeps being placed into my path from multiple avenues. 
I have 5 points that lead to my rationale for running for Mayor of Calhoun:

1. Ideas that come to me from my experiences with visiting and networking with other communities in our region and state. I have gained experience and excellent ideas from other communities that we could implement in our community.

2. My experiences in my work as a principal and commissioner bring connections with leaders across our community. With over 22 years of working experience with our community, I believe I possess the skills needed to lead Calhoun into the future.

3. Meeting with stakeholders in Calhoun and the brainstorming sessions that we have had as to what the future of Calhoun will look like for our children and grandchildren. These are generational folks and those citizens new to our community. This would continue with my leadership as Mayor.

4. The growth we are experiencing and leaders not pushing a forward-thinking mindset on planning. We are not influencing the growth currently; we are reacting to the growth.

5. The last influencing decision was a combination of a recent study series that I was completing and a lunch meeting with a friend of our community. We were talking and he shared that I was consistently sharing “UNITY”, “WE”, and a vision of “OUR Community”. 

His encouragement and the study of Ephesians 4, lead me to act on seeking this role to give back to a community that has provided much for me and my family. Using Ephesians 4 as a launch point and reference, I wish to be a unifier and focus on a walk that is worthy of honor as a representative of Calhoun and the people of our community. I wish to use Paul’s teachings to carry forth a level of leadership that reflects the descriptors of Ephesian’s 4: Humility, gentleness, patience, keeping unity on the forefront and continually focused on a walk worthy of a high level of service to our people.

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WHAT DO YOU LOVE ABOUT THE COMMUNITY?
I was born and raise at 503 Peters Street in 1964. I love that our community is supportive of our all our schools and works hard to raise the next generation of leaders for Calhoun and Gordon County. Our community is also a caring community. Our churches, support services, and civic groups offer much for our citizens. I want to see more growth in the areas of Infrastructure/ Transportation and Quality of Life opportunities for our citizens. With a focus on these areas, I am hopeful that we can encourage our best and brightest to return to our community and continue the roots that current parents and grandparents have established in the community. 
   
WHAT ISSUES DO YOU WANT TO ADDRESS?
Quality of Life:

I firmly believe that we have a great community, but I also believe that we can be better and offer more opportunities for our citizens. 

With the following ideas, I believe we can move towards a City Government that serves its citizens with opportunities to work, live, and play in our city every day.

First, we must be willing to place ideas in front of our community and assess their levels of interest. Below, I have listed items of interest: 
•“The Gathering”- (Concept Name)
This concept project would be of benefit to every citizen within our community (City/County). A comprehensive plan for an area of property that would serve multiple uses that is near downtown Calhoun. I would not limit any idea and would lean on community input to guide this design. The following are some prospective ideas that could be included in the design of “The Gathering” (Concept Name):

• Amphitheater- Schedule/Design a Summer Concert Series with private, public, and intergovernmental support.

• Expansion of the “Rivers to Ridge” trail system to connect to this project.

• Food Truck Court that would complement the Amphitheater venue and a weekly Food Truck Court for a local stop point during the week.      

• RV Park that would house motorhomes for concerts and other activities adjacent to this property. The specifications would cater to tourists who are searching for locations that offer opportunities for recreation and tourism dollars that will be spent locally.     

• Expand on recreational activities for this development: Skeet Shooting, Bicycling, Golf Cart access, Frisbee Golf, and Agriculture opportunities with our 4H Center and the Multipurpose facility that is scheduled to be built through SPLOST collections currently.

• A potential redesign of the local Fair by providing a venue that users would benefit from through location and accessibility. Basically, create a new and improved “Northwest Georgia Mountain Fair” for increased tourism for our community. With the addition of the Amphitheater, this would rival the Georgia Mountain Fair venue.    

• Partner with the Board of Regents/University of Georgia and develop a University Center/Hotel adjacent to this project and offer a Conference Center and meeting areas for all Northwest Georgia. The Board of Regents has a facility in Southwest Georgia- “The Tifton Campus.” We could work collaboratively to develop a complimentary plan to serve our citizens and to bring additional tourism dollars into the City of Calhoun.

• The Amphitheater would seat 2000+ people and the Conference Center would offer a theater that would seat 2000+ people as well as meeting rooms for breakout sessions. 

• The Gathering” (Concept Name) would benefit our downtown businesses with visitors/tourism coming to events at this location due to its proximity to Downtown Calhoun. With proper promotions, our Downtown area will have increased visitors to our restaurants and businesses.

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Other Items of Interest:

• Revisit the past and current Comprehensive Plans and align or realign our direction on these plans to benefit the community.

• Develop a “Historical Showcase for Calhoun”:

  • The founding of Calhoun and Gordon County. Share our history through festivals and planned events.   

  • We have a recorded history with Desoto and his expeditions. We could build upon this history.

  • Revolutionary War influences.

  • Develop a relationship with the Cherokee Nation and entertain all ideas to connect with their people. We are the “Land of the Cherokee”, but we do not connect with the Cherokee people for anything much other than the Echota State Park and a few events.

  • Expand the already successful, “Battle of Resaca”. With the relatively new parks we have built, our community could expand opportunities utilizing this historical period for our community. Again, tourism dollars will help our community.

  • Plan and design a “ROLAND HAYES MUSIC FESTIVAL”. This could be an event that highlights local talent and talent from across the United States. This festival would highlight Mr. Hayes and various genres of music. He was a trained and successful Classical Musician but his influence impacted a cross section of music. We could select genres that come from his life and experiences. Our museum at the Harris Arts Center is great but we could bring Roland Hayes out of the museum and to the community through an outdoor music festival.

  • Using the historical periods and adding the events above, “The Gathering” (Concept Name) would/could provide opportunities for tourism and for our people to enjoy activities that highlight our community and history.

• Revisit the “2007 Transportation Plan and Three-Year Transportation Improvement Program”

  • This plan was completed in February 2007. If the ideas presented by MACTEC for the City of Calhoun and Gordon County were partially implemented, our infrastructure/roads would be in a better place for today’s citizens.

  • As the State of Georgia turns over the Highway 53/Belmont Drive corridor, it is imperative that we study this corridor and make plans to improve the flow of what many call, “Fast Food Alley”. 

  • Curtis Parkway, and Richardson Road have challenging intersections that need our attention to be more symmetrical for safer left turns. Traffic Studies will offer solid ideas to improve this area for citizens and interstate visitors making quick stops in our community.

  •   Increase our focus on helping developers and property owners on the Red Bud Road exit develop their partials to entice interstate drivers to stop and spend their money in our community.

• Place the City of Calhoun back into the current “Rivers to Ridges” plan. This would boost ecotourism. Currently, we are not in this plan and have all but walked away from the original template.•    

• Expand our recycling services to parallel the facilities in Floyd County and Pickens County. I have met the director of the Pickens County Facility and he has designed a “for-profit” center in both Floyd and Pickens County.

•  Work to add cell phone coverage and Wi-Fi coverage to the downtown corridors. We have added free Wi-Fi to select areas, but the downtown corridor still has dead spots for cell phone and Wi-Fi services.

• Meet with our Chamber of Commerce and restore their funding to allow the Chamber and Development Authority to work on behalf of the citizens of Calhoun and Gordon County. This body guides the growth in our community. 

• Continue to support all our municipal services and assess their level of needs to keep our community safe, secure, and clean. Police, Fire, Recreation, Public Works, and Utilities all received raises this fiscal year but based off the recent Millage Rate Report, all entities are doing more work with less resources. Resources that the “boots on the ground” need to perform their jobs. Fire Trucks and Police Cars have been updated in the recent budget, but I believe the upgrades could have happened sooner based off the reported fund balance and reserves the City of Calhoun has on hand.

• I am a firm believer in both of our school districts within our community. 

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I have worked as a teacher/coach at Gordon Central, and an administrator at Calhoun High School and Sonoraville High School. Our high schools are the life blood of the future, but we need to be planning and preparing to keep our best resources at home. Too many are moving from our community because we lack vision and ideas to keep them in our city and community. As Mayor and as a citizen today, I am the biggest cheerleader for our schools. I worked 31.5 years seeking to be the best in all our schools and this will continue as your mayor.

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To close out this lengthy list of ideas and thoughts, I want to share that I believe the function and influence of the county seat, Calhoun, Ga., is to be the catalyst for the community. As our city grows, the influence of this growth impacts everyone within our community. That is Calhoun and the whole of Gordon County.

As the infrastructure of the city evolves, the citizens of our community benefit. 

It is time we become a forward-thinking body. 

Two closing points:
1. Work to catch up our infrastructure with present growth.
2. Study, plan, and develop our community as we continue to grow in population, industry, and services.

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WHAT CHANGES DO YOU FEEL NEED TO BE MADE IN THE CITY?
Our leaders need to be more forward thinking as we move rapidly into the future. As mentioned, we are not influencing the growth currently; we are reacting to the growth. With targeted planning, we can influence the growth with solid infrastructure planning and updating. The biggest change that will benefit our community is having a Mayor and City Council that serve all citizens in our community. We need leaders that are involved and active in the community on a consistent basis and not in election season. I have committed to service in many roles since my retirement from education and that will continue as Mayor of Calhoun. I wish to be the hands and feet that our community deserves.

WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO IMPLEMENT?
Once elected, the items listed in Question 4 will join the current City Council initiatives for Calhoun.