For the last nearly 4 years I have served as this city’s mayor.  Prior to being elected Mayor in 2019, I served on the city council.  It was there that I first began to understand the gravity of the issues facing our city.  We had just recovered from an algae bloom that compromised our city’s drinking water, we made national news as the water supply was disrupted.  There were frequent reports of dirty tap water and foul odors coming from the tap.  The infrastructure was failing and, in many cases, the clean water was not running through pipes to your homes, it was actually passing through rust and red clay.

The city had no money for the long deferred maintenance and system upgrades, the water and sewer systems were not self-sustaining and indeed were losing money.  The city had been saddled with a 34-million-dollar sewer plant that we had been paying interest only on since 2009.  In that time the city had paid some 2.2 million dollars in principle, but nearly 16 million dollars in interest on that debt. The roads needed repaving all over the city and in many failed neighborhoods left over from the housing crash, roads had not even been top coated.

Today, we are in a much different position.  Road, Water, and Sewer projects all over town may be inconvenient, they are preparing our city for clean water, functioning sewer systems, and traffic management that will carry us through the next decade.  Last May, we refinanced the 30-year note on our wastewater plant and we are now working down the principal. Over the past few years, we have gradually raised water rates so that the water and sewer enterprise funds, especially the water fund, is paying for itself.

I grew up here in Villa Rica.  We lived in the housing projects when I was a kid, I was adopted when I was 11 years old, and then I lost both parents by the time I was 18.  I have faced tough challenges in my life, but I have always found a way to overcome them.  I don’t give up. 

I chose to raise my family here, 3 boys and 3 dogs.  I am a father, a business owner, and for more than 10 years I was a foster parent.  We have opened our home to literally hundreds of foster children over the years and I am proud of the positive impact we have been able to have on those kids.

Running for another term as Mayor for me is about finishing the job we have started.  There is no doubt that the growth we are seeing can seem overwhelming because it is.  What I will say to you is that the city did not and does not seek out this growth.  We have worked hard to meet the challenges and not fall victim to them.  Even while you look around and question one project or another, I would point out that the entire rewrite of the zoning ordinance a few years ago has made it much more difficult to build in Villa Rica, I know because I take calls weekly from developers complaining that they cannot get their projects through staff. I want it to be difficult, I want to raise the bar, and we are doing just that. 

Think for just a moment of the Charley’s development, 10 separate parcel owners, traffic is awful, and the infrastructure is privately owned, that could not get approved today.  Look behind Arby’s, 3 hotels and a short term pay by the week, with private road access and failing infrastructure, that could not get approved today. I have spent the last 4 years as Mayor focused on responsible solutions to the most pressing issues facing our city.  I want to continue that work for another term as our mayor.  I have the leadership, experience, and commitment to keep this city moving.  A motto I have led by comes from Albert Einstein, “we cannot solve our problems using the same logic we used when we created them.”  We must think differently.  Plan differently. 

I am convinced now, more than ever, that your decision for Mayor will heavily influence the shape and direction we take over the critical course of the coming years.  Generalized statements of lofty ideas and promises are not enough to handle the serious challenges we currently face.  I believe my solid tenure of service over the last 4 years as Mayor and a lifetime in this community, have informed me in such a manner to continue leading this city responsibly.  

I have listened to some of my opponents, and it is unfortunate the way they have made personal unfounded attacks.  There is an old saying that goes like this, when the facts are on your side, argue the facts, when the law is on your side, argue the law, if neither are on your side, pound the table.  They are pounding the table!

The people of this City know I am serious about the work I do because I have already demonstrated that commitment and I will continue if reelected Mayor.  I humbly ask for your vote, in partnership to move Villa Rica forward, together.