If voter turnout in the upcoming General Election in Gray mirrors the attendance at a meet-the-candidates forum last week, poll workers will have a lot of idle time on their hands Nov. 4.
The problem is, while basically no disinterested party showed up at Butler Hall Sept. 30 to hear from the candidates in the four city districts, few seeking council seats were present, either. All four districts have contested races, two candidates in each. Of the eight who are running, only three showed up: District 1 incumbent David Tufts and District 3’s incumbent Terrell Fulford and challenger Natalie Lurie.
No one from either of the two other districts were on hand, and the reason for just one — Ikea Simmons — was given. Simmons, running against Lehman Wood for the open District 2 seat, is recuperating from a kidney transplant. No explanation was given for the absence of Wood, Tufts’ challenger Rick Tipton, or District 4 candidates incumbent Terry Favors and challenger Billy Horne.
On the flip side, a check of the less-than-20 attendees showed all were either relatives of candidates or representatives of government entities. Mayor Ed Barbee and Mayor Pro Tem James Collins, both unopposed, were on hand, as were county commissioners Sam Kitchens and John Wood. Co-sponsor Chamber of Commerce President Chloe Crutchfield and Mallory Lunsford represented that agency, while Main Street Manager Ashley Roberson was present.
Jones County High students filmed the forum for the city’s Facebook page, and William Mathews was the moderator, rounding out the audience.
Following brief introductions, the three candidates fielded several questions for about 45 minutes. The trio agreed on most issues, but a few queries brought different responses.
Responding to one of the first questions, all three agreed they see no need to proactively expand the city’s limits.
The package sales of liquor in the city was defeated by one vote in a previous referendum, and the candidates took opposing views last week as to whether they would support placing the question on the ballot again.
“My personal opinion is yes, and that’s all I have to say on that,” Tufts commented.
“Well, I know there’s probably some revenue that the city could make out of it,” Fulford acknowledged, then added, “but I voted against it the first time, so I would probably vote against it again.”
Lurie looked at it from the financial angle.
“I would be all for putting package sales, liquor sales back on,” she said. “I hate it didn’t pass with such a slim margin the last time. I think it is a lot of revenue that we are losing to both Bibb and Baldwin County, and that’s money that we could easily bring back into the city.”
Matthews later pointed out that a splash pad/skate park has been suggested for the Gray area, and he asked for the candidates’ opinions.
“This is one of those projects that on the surface sounds really fun and really awesome,” Lurie began, “and I think the further you dig into it, the bigger a problem it becomes. I like the idea of that, especially having a young daughter. That sounds awesome, to take her to a splash pad or a water park or anything like that. But, unfortunately, what I understand about cities that have them, they are a black hole. They’re a constant problem of liability, unfortunately, and they require so much upkeep … I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“A splash pad is a money problem,” Fulford observed. “It takes a lot of water to do a splash pad, so I would be against it.”
Tufts would like the city to develop the water park, but he does not believe now is the time.
“They would be good for kids, and even adults, for recreation, if they were done right,” the veteran city council member said. “I know there have been some cities that have put them in and had all kinds of problems with them. So, if we do it, we should make sure we do It right. But, at this time,” Tufts declared, “I don’t think the City of Gray should build splash pads.”
The three candidates showed support for another referendum on the transportation special purpose local option sales tax (T-SPLOST), which has been defeated twice by county and city voters. That one-cent sales tax would go toward street and other transportation projects in the city.
“I think we need to do more explaining to the citizens about what it can do for us,” Tufts said.
Fulford agreed. “It’s sort of one of those that didn’t get explained right when it came to a vote, but T-SPLOST, I would be in favor of it if I could vote for it.”
Lurie concurred as to educating the public.
“I think that not so much advertising, but even as simple as creating a list to tell the public, these are the projects that are going to be paid for with the T-SPLOST tax. I think giving people a visual about where their money is going to would be very beneficial.”
Gray does not have — and never has had — a city manager, and Fulford opposes changing the city charter to authorize one. He pointed out that someone in that position would likely cost upwards of $125,000 annually, unnecessarily, in his opinion.
“The city is small enough that the city council members have a finger on, know exactly what’s going on.”
Lurie disagreed. “In the meetings that I’ve been to, I’ve noticed several different issues or projects that I think the city would really benefit having one main person that works everything out, brings it in front of the full council. Right now, the city’s paying the city attorney for his hourly fees as opposed to just paying one salary position to help put all of this together.”
Tufts concurred with Fulford.
“I don’t think so right now at this time. We haven’t reviewed that, and we’re going in the right direction. I know that a city manager would take the pressure off our department heads, but at this time I don’t think it is necessary.”
All three agreed that term limits for council members is a good idea, but the incumbents qualified their positions. Fulford has been on the council for 25 years, Tufts 34.
“I don’t think we need to have term limits all at one time,” Fulford cautioned. “You get a council with four council members, and you could have four different people there at one time. It should be maybe every couple of years, two years between voting on it, but term limits would be good.”
His opponent clearly favors term limits.
“Yes, I’m in favor of term limits across the board for everybody, anybody,” Lurie responded. “I think that getting fresh faces, new ideas, new voices in any kind of government agency is always good. There’s always a benefit to having somebody with knowledge and experience. But I think knowledge and experience can get a little bit stale, and I think it’s great to keep everything moving.”
Tufts also said he favors some sort of phased-in system to initiate term limits.
Mathews closed the program with brief remarks.
“The people that we have in Gray, in this area, we make it great,” he offered. “And it is incumbent upon us to show up to vote, to have our voice heard. People, whatever reason they couldn’t be here; that’s between them and their own calendar, their own conscience. But we need to make a serious decision about who we want to represent us because what made us great won’t last If we don’t fight for it.
“I think we’ve got some good candidates, and it’s incumbent upon us to show up and vote.”
