Major Issues of District 4 (and there are a lot of them)

Simply stated, better city infrastructure leads to growth and better jobs. If people are happy living in Decatur, they will tell their friends and relatives to come to Decatur. The Mayor and the City Council should be right out front on this, establishing world-class facilities such as parks, recreation centers, and even dog parks for those who live in apartments and townhouses and do not have a place to take their dogs to exercise and socialize.

Yet in Decatur, we actually seem to do the exact opposite. We build 1 dog park in District 4 at Wilson Morgan Park, and then tear it down to build a recreation center and relocate the dog park to District 3. Sounds fair, and not a waste of taxpayer's money, right?

WRONG! Even if every square inch of the fencing was reused out near Point Mallard that was taken down from Wilson Morgan Park, and I seriously doubt it was, what about the cost of the labor to erect the fence, then to tear it down, and then erect it a second time. What is this called? POOR PLANNING!

THIS IS WHAT I WANT TO HELP CHANGE! Decatur has known for a long time that the Aquadome needed to be closed down because of the 3M settlement. But the previous and current council could not agree on WHERE to locate the new recreation center. So the result is WASTING the taxpayer's hard earned money, and this has to STOP!

Another part of infrastructure is our roads. Our roads are in TERRIBLE shape. Decatur's roads go too many years without paving and many are filled with potholes. Now, Decatur Utilities (DU) is upgrading the sewer system, resulting in all of our main roads in District 4 becoming nothing but a patchwork quilt of potholes.

All of the main thoroughfares in Decatur leading to the main shopping areas on the Beltline pass thru District 4 and are riddled with potholes. These roads are driven almost daily by many of us, so the next time you are on Austinville Rd., Sandlin Rd., or Spring Ave. remember that all of those potholes are from DU and thank your current Decatur City Council.

I attended a recent City Council meeting, and I stood up and asked them what the plan was to fix all of the mess with the streets. What response do you think I got?

The current Council President and District 5 representative tried to convince me that DU's contractor is paving entire roads and/or sections of roads, and I had to correct him. Maybe in your district, but not in District 4. The current leadership is TOTALLY out of touch, and apparently have NO plan to hold DU responsible for this mess, and no plans to pave the roads anytime soon as the City, so we the citizens of Decatur have to daily navigate the patchwork quilt of POTHOLES!

When you say infrastructure, many think of roads, schools, parks, and recreation centers. What many don't think about are the equipment used by the Fire Department, Police Department, and services we take for granted like garbage, trash, and recycling pickup. Decatur needs a better equipped police and fire department, better garbage and trash pickup and also better recycling services afforded to the citizens of our city.

Additionally, Decatur as a city needs to start taking better care of its own property. Decatur needs to mow city grass and keep city buildings well maintained and looking attractive to others both inside and outside our community, and this needs to be done ALL OVER DECATUR. If our city does not look clean and well kept, visitors will pass us by, both in terms of tourism and in terms of relocating here. And only when the City of Decatur routinely maintains its property should it then be levying fines against individuals (abatements) for not repairing their property or keeping their yards mowed.

There has NOT been a major industry to locate in Decatur in decades. Decatur used to grow at an acceptably moderate rate by most citizen's standards, but that growth has stagnated due to lack of leadership in City Hall from the Mayor's Office, City Council, and the Planning Commission. We need to make changes to the Planning Commission, and get a real City Planner with city planning experience on the Decatur payroll like we once had, and start ACTIVELY making contacts with industry to sell them on the great investment potential that exists for investing and locating here in Decatur.

If elected, I will do everything I can to make this a reality.

The Decatur City Council should have full insight into the city budget EVERY fiscal year, should know the items on the budget intimately, and be able to respond to Decatur citizens when asked about ANYTHING contained on ANY LINE in the budget. This includes knowing:

1. How much money is going to be spent.
2. What it is going to be spent on.
3. Who or what person or department requested the expenditure.
4. And why the expenditure request was made.

This is how any successful business runs their affairs, and the same should be true for the City of Decatur. For any project that I manage at my job, no matter how big or small it is, I have to be able to successfully manage the people, the budget, and the schedule.

If elected, I would move to have this insight restored to the members of the City Council and return to how things were done years ago. The City Councilmen should be responsible stewards of the taxes paid by the Citizens of Decatur, and be able to say with honesty and integrity that we did the very best job that we could for the citizens of our districts.

Simply rubber stamping something prepared by another group (for example, the Planning Commission or the Chamber of Commerce) who says "it is good, just sign it" will no longer be acceptable if I am elected.

Previous District 4 representation paid lip service to their constituents (and I don't mean just the current incumbent, this has gone on for a long time with at least the last 2 District 4 councilmen, and it needs to stop NOW). I know this first-hand because they paid lip service to me and made promises that simply were never delivered on, not even to this day.

District 4 needs a representative who will NOT make empty promises to his constituents, and that is something I promise I WILL NEVER DO. I will be an open door and a listening ear for the entire District and the whole City. I will act on every issue that is brought to my attention, however big or small it may be.

AND I will NEVER make a promise that I cannot keep under any circumstances, that simply goes against every fiber in my being.

The Good Old Boys have their own agenda. Big Business has their own agenda. And the Chamber of Commerce has their own agenda. Three agendas, and only when all 3 overlap with what is beneficial for the residents of Decatur does something good for all of us happen. Why? Because for MANY years the Mayor's office and City Council have been dominated by these 3 special interests. I am running against AT LEAST 2 candidates who are backed by these same special interest groups who have their own best interests at heart instead of what is best for District 4 and the entire City of Decatur.

The main purpose of the Planning Commission is to lay out an overall plan and set of objectives for the City of Decatur to meet or exceed over a fixed period of time, for example the next 1, 3, 5, 7, or 10 years. But has any of this occurred? I have not heard of any LONG TERM plans being made for Decatur that leads to grown in terms of jobs and residents (just more fast food and Mexican restaurants, car washes, and drive-thru coffee places). Is that what YOU call growth? I DON'T!

The bottom line is: Decatur needs several more upscale/fine dining restaurants. And the residents of Decatur need to patronize those restaurants and help keep them in business. I can list a number of fine/upscale restaurants that USED to be in Decatur and were there for those memorable times in your life like Prom, Graduation, Wedding Receptions, etc.

Decatur also needs more activities that people REALLY like to do (pickleball gets really old, really fast). What happened to the Spirit of America festival? Rain, Heat, low attendance? I grew up with this even happening EVERY year, and I remember when then President Ronald Reagan landed at Point Mallard and spoke on the Spirit of America stage in 1984, followed by the HUGE fireworks shows. On Memorial Day, the sky was literally filled with hot air balloons, but I have not seen one over my house in years on Memorial Day. Point Mallard Aquatic Park was always a huge draw for Decatur as well.

Nowadays, I never hear ANYONE mention any of these, now it is more things like axe throwing, pickleball, and walking/biking trails and dog parks. In the same way that things change, it is time for leadership to change. Decatur needs a breath of fresh air in the Mayor's seat and the City Council.

Several candidates running have said they support more and better parks, recreation centers, and overall infrastructure, but like the current administration, are only in favor of it as long as it is in THEIR DISTRICT, the "Just my district" focus and mentality.

One of the candidates for District 4 has promised that she will "prioritize the needs and wants of residents of D4" (aka District 4). Anything wrong with that? Not unless it interferes with the good of the entire city of Decatur.

Each district needs to be treated much more equally and fairly. District 1 and District 4 seem to ALWAYS come up as my Dad would say "on the short end of the stick", what I now call being one of the "outcast districts" in Decatur. District 4 needs more money spent on infrastructure in District 4, I totally and wholeheartedly agree. But Decatur as a whole needs more money spent on many of the EXACT SAME THINGS.

Decatur needs a more holistic approach on infrastructure. Better city infrastructure leads to growth, more commerce, more retail sales, more jobs, more tourism, more growth. And this all leads to better jobs for EVERYONE in Decatur.

How do we do this? Having better parks, more community-based recreation centers, and even more dog parks. If I am elected, I will whole heartedly support creating these, because having to drive all the way across town to go to a recreational center or to a dog park is totally and simply unacceptable. Let's work and change this together!

Summary of those running against me:

• VP of a family-owned/run business. Lost his bid for State House of Representatives in 2008, Decatur Industrial Development Board (appointed by the City Council). Establishment backed, Good Old Boy candidate.
• HR consultant with multiple certifications, including as a mediator, Vice Chair of the Decatur City Personnel Board (12 years, multiple City Council appointments), Chair of the Morgan County Personnel Review Board (13 years, multiple Morgan County Commission appointments), Board of Directors of the Decatur Chamber of Commerce, President of the Women's Chamber. Establishment backed, Good Old Boy candidate. Supported by the Chamber because they want to continue the run of new hotels, Mexican and fast food restaurants, automatic car washes, and drive thru coffee establishments.
• Activist, former health care worker, works estate sales and is H&R Block trained to file income taxes. I can balance my checkbook without a calculator, can she? NOT qualified to understand the City budget.
• Antiques dealer who needed a GoFundMe campaign a few months ago when her father passed in order to bail her out of her and her father's financial obligations. Thrifting and garage sales do not make you an antiques dealer. NOT qualified to manage taxpayer's funds or city projects.

I AM NOT A PART OF THE ESTABLISHMENT. I am qualified since I know math, how to manage budgets, schedules, and people, and how to facilitate communication.

I AM NOT A PART OF THE ESTABLISHMENT. I have repeatedly said that, and will continue to do so. But I just went to the FCPA (Fair Campaign Practices Act) website for the State of Alabama. This is where all candidates have to file financial reports once they reach a certain amount of combined donations and expenditures ($1000 to be exact), and I found some SHOCKING information thru July 1, 2025 (and I can't wait to see the updates for July in a few days):

In District 4, there are 5 candidates, 4 of which have filed to establish their Principal Campaign Committee, the group who is responsible for tracking and reporting your campaign expenses. It is 100% legal to have yourself as the candidate be the only member of the committee (that is what I did and what 3 of my 4 opponents also did, one candidate has not established his committee yet, and the law says you don't have to until you reach the $1000 mark I mentioned earlier).

What was shocking is that one candidate (big business, Chamber supported) has been reporting contributions and expenditures (not sure what on, all I have seen are a few yard signs) of almost $2200.

Is Big Business and the Chamber trying to buy the District 4 seat on the Council?

WAIT! WHAT DID YOU SAY?

Yes, the Chamber and Big Business is also trying to buy the entire City Council and Mayor races in Decatur. The same FCPA website