With filing coming up in a couple of months for the local municipal elections, and with open races anticipated for the Blytheville and Gosnell mayoral positions, it's worth a look at the type of qualities needed in the ideal mayor.
In the coming weeks, topics such as road conditions, police protection, job creation, grant applications and recreational facilities are sure to dominate the discussion when it comes to picking a new mayor. And well they should. But the success any candidate will have tackling those issues will be directly related to the skills and experience he or she brings to the table.
So what skills should mayoral candidates bring to the table? Here's a few I would like to see:
— The ideal mayor should have experience in a government setting. Whether it's a city council, a school board or a state legislature, government doesn't always work like the real world. There's a host of regulations and red tape, and there's almost always a political component to everything you do. A mayor's success will be linked to his or her ability to understand these intricacies.
— The ideal mayor should have experience in the private sector. Running a city is a lot like running a business. There's income and expenses that must be balanced. There's personnel issues that must be properly handled. There are deadlines and commitments that must be met. Any candidate who has worked in the private sector with any degree of success has a leg up on his or her rivals.
— The ideal mayor should be smart. One need not necessarily be a rocket scientist or a Nobel laureate, but a mayor's got to have some street smarts and a lot of common sense. He or she must be able to process information and make logical decisions. Citizens deserve to have the best and brightest the community has to offer serving in leadership positions — mayors should never be likable folks who just couldn't make it in the "real world."
— The ideal mayor must be a uniter. We live in a diverse community. We are black. We are white. We are rich. We are poor. We are old. We are young. We are of all levels of education. We need a mayor who can connect with everyone and build strong coalitions. The various candidates considered to be candidates for mayor all have their own constituencies which will follow them loyally. But that's not enough. To be a successful mayor, one must be able to reach out to different groups of citizens, and unite them behind a common cause.
— The ideal mayor must be a good ambassador for the community. Whoever is elected will be called upon to represent the city in any of a number of public settings. Sometimes the only impression an outsider to the community will get will be from the mayor. We need someone who will represent the community well.
— The ideal mayor must be honest. It sounds like a no-brainer, but anyone who has followed the news knows that many communities have struggled with this. The mayor must be absolutely steadfast in following the law, and in conducting city business in an open and ethical manner. The needs of the citizenry must outweigh the seduction of cronyism.
— The ideal mayor must know the community. One need not be a lifelong resident, but anyone running for mayor ought to have lived here long enough to know the Rotary Club from the Boys and Girls Club. They've got to have an understanding of the area's history — its successes, and its failures. After all, those who don't know their history are doomed to repeat it.
— The ideal candidate will have spent part of his or her adult life living outside Mississippi County. Seeing how different communities have operated in different places can provide a mayor invaluable perspective in finding new approaches to old problems.
— The ideal mayor will be a good organizer. He or she must be able to effectively maintain the vast amount of information needed to keep the city running. We need a mayor who can keep the i's dotted and the t's crossed. The mayor must be able to delegate authority.
— The ideal mayor will be a visionary. It's not enough to know where we've been or where we are. The mayor must be someone who can see where we need to go — and figure out a way to get there.
Do any of the candidates running for mayor meet all these qualities? Probably not. But some of the candidates possess some of these characteristics. The trick for voters will be determining which candidates bring the most to the table, and making the informed pick on election day.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Is county sales tax building prosperity?
When it comes to the county's half-cent sales tax for economic development — slated to go before voters for renewal on Aug. 10 — there are two absolute certainties.
First, the tax has been a huge success at creating new jobs in Mississippi County. From Roll Coater, to Aviation Repair Technologies, to Lowe's, to Beckmann Volmer, there are thousands of jobs available in Mississippi County that can be traced directly the the existence of the economic development sales tax. Those jobs came both via new industry, as well as through expansion of existing industry.
Second, it is absolutely vital that the county remain aggressive in its pursuit of economic development. No county can afford to rest on its laurels, satisfied with what it already has. This is especially true in counties like ours, where poverty and joblessness have long be a problem.
That said, I think it's worth a look at the big picture before automatically renewing the sales tax.
At the end of the day, the purpose of this sales tax — or any tax, really — is to promote the prosperity of the community. And I think it's important to ask whether or not the prosperity of Mississippi County has improved since the tax was implemented in 2003.
There are any of a number of ways to measure prosperity, and none of them are perfect. One way is with unemployment figures. A year or so before the economic development tax as implemented, the county's unemployment rate topped 15 percent, and was the highest in the state. According to the USDA, unemployment the year the tax began was 11.8 percent. That figure dropped as low as 7.1 percent in 2007, before jumping back up to 13.1 percent in 2009, in the midst of the nationwide recession.
Another way to measure prosperity is with population. Where there is prosperity, the population generally goes up. Where prosperity is elusive, the population generally shrinks. Until the 2010 Census is complete, we won't know exactly what the area population is — most of the numbers out there are mere estimates, based on 1990 and 2000 numbers. But it's been assumed by many that communities like Blytheville will have lost residents in the last decade. With new housing development in places like Armorel and Manila, it's possible that the county, as a whole, has held steady or seen marginal growth. But it's hard to know for sure.
A third way to measure prosperity is simply by looking around. It's a subjective measurement, to be sure, but it's hard to drive down East Main in Blytheville these days, seeing the absence of such places as Mazzios, Bonanza, Pizza Inn, Stage, Crossroads and Starbucks — all having closed in the last decade — and not feel like prosperity is lacking.
One of the problems with the economic development sales tax is that many of the jobs being created are not held by people who live in Mississippi County. To some degree, our economic development efforts in Mississippi County are being used to create jobs for people who live in Dyersburg, or Jonesboro, or Kennett, or West Memphis. Indeed, I was once told that the largest employer of Kennett residents was then-Maverick Tube, east of Blytheville.
I don't want to discount the diligent efforts put forth for our county's economic development team. Again, when it comes to job creation, anyone who complains is simply not paying attention.
But I'm not sure that job growth should be the only goal in mind. Efforts also need to be put forth to make Mississippi County a quality place to live. We need good roads, nice parks, quality health care and safe neighborhoods. We need nice places to shop and dine. Somebody needs to show me how our current economic development efforts are leading to those things.
If approved by voters, the economic development sales tax will be in place until 2023. That's a long time. Perhaps before we embark on another 13 years of the same strategy, it would be prudent to take a step back, evaluate our goals, determine the best path forward, and see if there aren't some ways to be even more successful in our economic development efforts.
First, the tax has been a huge success at creating new jobs in Mississippi County. From Roll Coater, to Aviation Repair Technologies, to Lowe's, to Beckmann Volmer, there are thousands of jobs available in Mississippi County that can be traced directly the the existence of the economic development sales tax. Those jobs came both via new industry, as well as through expansion of existing industry.
Second, it is absolutely vital that the county remain aggressive in its pursuit of economic development. No county can afford to rest on its laurels, satisfied with what it already has. This is especially true in counties like ours, where poverty and joblessness have long be a problem.
That said, I think it's worth a look at the big picture before automatically renewing the sales tax.
At the end of the day, the purpose of this sales tax — or any tax, really — is to promote the prosperity of the community. And I think it's important to ask whether or not the prosperity of Mississippi County has improved since the tax was implemented in 2003.
There are any of a number of ways to measure prosperity, and none of them are perfect. One way is with unemployment figures. A year or so before the economic development tax as implemented, the county's unemployment rate topped 15 percent, and was the highest in the state. According to the USDA, unemployment the year the tax began was 11.8 percent. That figure dropped as low as 7.1 percent in 2007, before jumping back up to 13.1 percent in 2009, in the midst of the nationwide recession.
Another way to measure prosperity is with population. Where there is prosperity, the population generally goes up. Where prosperity is elusive, the population generally shrinks. Until the 2010 Census is complete, we won't know exactly what the area population is — most of the numbers out there are mere estimates, based on 1990 and 2000 numbers. But it's been assumed by many that communities like Blytheville will have lost residents in the last decade. With new housing development in places like Armorel and Manila, it's possible that the county, as a whole, has held steady or seen marginal growth. But it's hard to know for sure.
A third way to measure prosperity is simply by looking around. It's a subjective measurement, to be sure, but it's hard to drive down East Main in Blytheville these days, seeing the absence of such places as Mazzios, Bonanza, Pizza Inn, Stage, Crossroads and Starbucks — all having closed in the last decade — and not feel like prosperity is lacking.
One of the problems with the economic development sales tax is that many of the jobs being created are not held by people who live in Mississippi County. To some degree, our economic development efforts in Mississippi County are being used to create jobs for people who live in Dyersburg, or Jonesboro, or Kennett, or West Memphis. Indeed, I was once told that the largest employer of Kennett residents was then-Maverick Tube, east of Blytheville.
I don't want to discount the diligent efforts put forth for our county's economic development team. Again, when it comes to job creation, anyone who complains is simply not paying attention.
But I'm not sure that job growth should be the only goal in mind. Efforts also need to be put forth to make Mississippi County a quality place to live. We need good roads, nice parks, quality health care and safe neighborhoods. We need nice places to shop and dine. Somebody needs to show me how our current economic development efforts are leading to those things.
If approved by voters, the economic development sales tax will be in place until 2023. That's a long time. Perhaps before we embark on another 13 years of the same strategy, it would be prudent to take a step back, evaluate our goals, determine the best path forward, and see if there aren't some ways to be even more successful in our economic development efforts.
Anti-incumbent mood felt locally
The buzz in the national media this political season has been all about the "anti-incumbent" or "anti-establishment" mood among American voters.
Looking at the results of last month's Preferential Primary Election, it looks like that mood is alive and well in Mississippi County.
Among the three most high-profile races — county judge, State Senate and sheriff — there wasn't an incumbent in the field. All three were open races.
All the same, the two candidates most closely associated with the current regime of local leadership were both soundly defeated.
One of those was Barrett Harrison, the current Blytheville mayor who was seeking the District 15 State Senate seat being vacated by Steve Bryles. Harrison lost to retired judge David Burnett. Harrison managed only about 36.4 percent of the vote over the entire district, which includes Mississippi and Poinsett counties. He fared somewhat better in north Mississippi County, but still only managed to secure about 44.7 percent of the votes.
The other candidate shouldering the burden of incumbency last week was John Alan Nelson in the race for county judge. Nelson is a longtime member of the Quorum Court, where he chairs the Finance Committee. During the campaign, he was labeled as the hand-picked successor to retiring County Judge Steve McGuire. In losing to Randy Carney, Nelson's vote totals were similar to Harrison's: He got 38.5 percent of the county vote, and 43.8 percent of the north county vote, Nelson's "home" territory.
With both Harrison and Nelson losing in pretty much every voting precinct in the area, it's pretty easy to conclude that local voters are in the mood for a change in direction.
While the primaries are over, this sentiment could continue to play a major role in this fall's elections, with major mayoral races and a tax referendum headed for the ballot.
With Gosnell Mayor Dick Reams retiring and Blytheville Mayor Barrett Harrison not expected to seek re-election, there will be no true incumbents in the field.
In Blytheville, Councilwoman Carol White and local businessman Tommy Abbott have formally announced their candidacy for mayor. Outgoing Sheriff James Sanders is also on the campaign trail, and school board member Tracey Ritchey has signaled interest in the race.
In Gosnell, meanwhile, city council members Tammy Fulks and Don Marshall, along with police chief Fred Roberts, have thrown their hats into the ring.
It will be interesting to see which, if any, of these candidates come to be seen as the "establishment" candidate, effectively shouldering the burden of incumbency. Neither Harrison nor Reams have publicly indicated any plans to endorse a potential successor, but given the current political climate, such a move might not be the kind of support candidates hope for.
Efforts to extend the county's economic development sales tax could also be affected by the anti-incumbant mood. Quorum Court justices agreed Tuesday to put the issue before voters on Aug. 10. Though the tax has been hugely successful at creating jobs across the county, the prevailing anti-establishment, anti-tax sentiment might give local leaders an added challenge when it comes getting the tax renewed, especially considering the tax passed by only 63 votes when it was originated in 2003.
Of course, predicting local elections is mostly a crapshoot, and there's no telling what will happen in the coming months to influence voters. But there's no doubting that local politics has been a source of high intrigue this year, and that intrigue looks to continue until November.
Looking at the results of last month's Preferential Primary Election, it looks like that mood is alive and well in Mississippi County.
Among the three most high-profile races — county judge, State Senate and sheriff — there wasn't an incumbent in the field. All three were open races.
All the same, the two candidates most closely associated with the current regime of local leadership were both soundly defeated.
One of those was Barrett Harrison, the current Blytheville mayor who was seeking the District 15 State Senate seat being vacated by Steve Bryles. Harrison lost to retired judge David Burnett. Harrison managed only about 36.4 percent of the vote over the entire district, which includes Mississippi and Poinsett counties. He fared somewhat better in north Mississippi County, but still only managed to secure about 44.7 percent of the votes.
The other candidate shouldering the burden of incumbency last week was John Alan Nelson in the race for county judge. Nelson is a longtime member of the Quorum Court, where he chairs the Finance Committee. During the campaign, he was labeled as the hand-picked successor to retiring County Judge Steve McGuire. In losing to Randy Carney, Nelson's vote totals were similar to Harrison's: He got 38.5 percent of the county vote, and 43.8 percent of the north county vote, Nelson's "home" territory.
With both Harrison and Nelson losing in pretty much every voting precinct in the area, it's pretty easy to conclude that local voters are in the mood for a change in direction.
While the primaries are over, this sentiment could continue to play a major role in this fall's elections, with major mayoral races and a tax referendum headed for the ballot.
With Gosnell Mayor Dick Reams retiring and Blytheville Mayor Barrett Harrison not expected to seek re-election, there will be no true incumbents in the field.
In Blytheville, Councilwoman Carol White and local businessman Tommy Abbott have formally announced their candidacy for mayor. Outgoing Sheriff James Sanders is also on the campaign trail, and school board member Tracey Ritchey has signaled interest in the race.
In Gosnell, meanwhile, city council members Tammy Fulks and Don Marshall, along with police chief Fred Roberts, have thrown their hats into the ring.
It will be interesting to see which, if any, of these candidates come to be seen as the "establishment" candidate, effectively shouldering the burden of incumbency. Neither Harrison nor Reams have publicly indicated any plans to endorse a potential successor, but given the current political climate, such a move might not be the kind of support candidates hope for.
Efforts to extend the county's economic development sales tax could also be affected by the anti-incumbant mood. Quorum Court justices agreed Tuesday to put the issue before voters on Aug. 10. Though the tax has been hugely successful at creating jobs across the county, the prevailing anti-establishment, anti-tax sentiment might give local leaders an added challenge when it comes getting the tax renewed, especially considering the tax passed by only 63 votes when it was originated in 2003.
Of course, predicting local elections is mostly a crapshoot, and there's no telling what will happen in the coming months to influence voters. But there's no doubting that local politics has been a source of high intrigue this year, and that intrigue looks to continue until November.
A blitzkrieg of posts
It seems that I've been a bit lax in updating this blog of late.
I will remedy this with a torrent of new postings.
I will remedy this with a torrent of new postings.
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