Published: February 01, 2008 10:23 am      

11 candidates in city commission race

All four incumbents and seven challengers have filed to run for Richmond City Commission.

The filing deadline passed Tuesday.

The 11 candidates will be on the ballot in a non-partisan primary on May 20. The top eight primary vote getters will proceed to the Nov. 4 general election.

The top four in November will serve on the commission for the next two years.

The challengers include two previous candidates for commission, but the other five are seeking elective office for the first time.

In alphabetical order, the first-time candidates are:

• Michael Bryant, 52, director of Madison County’s Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Program.

Bryant has been employed by CSEPP for the past 11 years. He was in broadcasting for over 20 years previously.

“I think it’s time for a change,” said Bryant. “For the past year, I’ve been thinking about running and where Richmond would to be 20 years from now and I want Richmond to be a good, safe place to live.”

If elected, Bryant said public safety would be his top priority. His work with CSEPP has given him valuable insight into public safety issues, he said.

• Cameron Scott Gibson, 24, an Eastern Kentucky University student who recently completed a four-year enlistment with the U.S. Marines.

The political science major served one tour of duty in Haiti and two in Iraq.

Gibson said he would bring a youthful veteran’s perspective to city government.

• John S. McDaniel III of Bay Colony Drive could not be reached Tuesday.

• Doug Parker of Fairlane Drive also could not be reached.

• Rita Smart, 59, retired from the University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service.

“I’ve been in public service all my life, and I would like to serve the people of Richmond,” she said. Smart said she would listen to citizens and build relationships to fulfill public needs.

Smart is a consultant to the city’s tourism and main street department. She and her husband Richard operate the Bennett House Bed and Breakfast on West Main Street.

Returning candidates:

• Richard Thomas, 66, retired administrator of Pattie A. Clay Regional Medical Center.

An unsuccessful candidate for city commission in 2004, Thomas has served six years on the city’s planning and zoning commission. For the past four months, he has worked two days a week for Kentucky River Foothills Community Action Partnership, driving a bus for the city-funded transit service.

Thomas said he would like to see city government focus “less on glitter and glitz and more on basic infrastructure such as streets.”

His bus-driving experience has been eye-opening, he said. “A lot of our city streets are in bad shape, and we have a lot of abandoned buildings that should be demolished.”

• Ian Ward, 26, an unsuccessful candidate in 2006, who said he was encouraged by the experience.

Ward has been employed in banking for the past seven years. He said he would like to see the city focus on basic services such as public safety. Spending on less-urgent priorities should be deferred, he said.

The incumbents are:

• Robert Blythe, 58, pastor of First Baptist Church, Francis Street, who has served on the commission for the past six years.

He lists “significant improvements in the police department, parks and recreation and the industrial park” as notable achievements during his tenure on the commission.

The opening of the Lake Reba aquatic center Memorial Day weekend will be the culmination of enhanced recreational opportunities for Richmond families, he said.

“I also hope we can continue to improve our downtown and provide constructive opportunities for our young people,” he said.

• Mike Brewer, 54, employed by the Madison County Emergency Medical Service and in his 10th year as a city commissioner.

Completion of the Lake Reba aquatic center will be the fulfillment of a 30-year dream for the city, he said. Opening a new phase of the Richmond’s industrial park, hiring a new police chief who is developing a new relationship with the community and the completion or beginning of improvements in the city’s water and sewer systems are highlights of the past two years, he said.

• Kay Cosby Jones, 55, a pharmacist, who is in her 20th year as a city commissioner.

She lists improvements in Richmond’s water and sewer systems as well as opening up the city’s comprehensive plan and police advisory board to citizen input as among the city’s top achievements in recent years.

Jones said she was excited about the opening of the Lake Reba aquatic center and new economic developments at Exit 87 of Interstate 75 and on the Robert R. Martin Bypass.

“Visits to other cities with the Richmond Chamber of Commerce has allowed me to see how other cities do things well, such as promoting economic development,” Jones said. “Who ever would have thought we would have city bus service? As a pharmacist, I see how important the bus service is to many citizens.”

• Bill Strong, 66, employed by the administrative office of the courts, who has served one term as mayor and 20 years as a commissioner. He also served a four-year term on the Madison Fiscal Court. He returned to the city commission in 2006.

“I think we’ve had a productive two years,” Strong said, “from improving our infrastructure to hiring a new police chief. We had been struggling in (the law enforcement) area.”

“I’m not one who likes to take credit for things,” he said. “I prefer to work behind the scenes to solve problems and help get things done.”

While Richmond is more fortunate than many other cities economically, Strong said good management of city government’s money in the next two years will become even more important if the national economy takes a down turn.

Bill Robinson can be reached at brobinson@richmondregister.com or at 623-1669.