JONESBORO -- Five people are trying to unseat the incumbent Jonesboro mayor in a race dominated by talk of pay raises for safety officers, a failed property maintenance code and drainage issues in the city of 71,550.
RELATED ARTICLES
http://www.arkansas…">Arkansas expects Election Day surge http://www.arkansas…">14 vie for revived School Board http://www.arkansas…">Foe fears 'pot' drive a repeat of opioid push http://www.arkansas…">Activists pinning hopes on power of stories http://www.arkansas…">Local contested races http://www.arkansas…">2 again face off for sheriff's post http://www.arkansas…">Tax cut, experience key in Senate race http://www.arkansas…">Planning experience cited by NLR council hopefuls http://www.arkansas…">3 tout qualifications for LR board http://www.arkansas…">In LR's Ward 4, public safety is focus http://www.arkansas…">Other contested races http://www.arkansas…">County schools millage rate to stay same, but it's on ballot http://www.arkansas…">9 sites in Pulaski County offer early voting http://www.arkansas…">Little River County near 'wet' vote http://www.arkansas…">Latino voter interest growing, groups say http://www.arkansas…">Hines, Smith running for Rogers mayor http://www.arkansas…">Candidates for county judge point to experience, county ties http://www.arkansas…">Fayetteville mayoral candidates have contrasting visions for future of city
Nathan Coleman, Harold Copenhaver, Amanda Dunavant, Thomas Elwood and John Street are challenging Mayor Harold Perrin, who is completing his second four-year term, in the November general election. Early voting begins Monday.
A seventh candidate, Gregg Stillwell, filed for the position but dropped out of the race in the summer.
It's the most to run against an incumbent Jonesboro mayor in years, and candidates say they were motivated to seek the role as the city's leader because of issues that emerged during Perrin's administration.
[INTERACTIVE LIST: Find the local races in your county or city]
Coleman, 34, hopes to follow fellow Jonesboro police officer Doug Forman's footsteps and become the second patrol officer to win the mayor's job. Forman won his bid for the position in 2004. He was defeated four years later by Perrin.
Coleman has worked as a third-shift officer with the Jonesboro Police Department for eight years and was the first one to file for his candidacy.
He said aldermen implemented a pay raise scale for the city's firefighters and police officers nearly a decade ago but failed to follow through with it. The City Council recently voted to increase police pay by about 6 percent.
"They are calling it a raise," Coleman said. "It's not a raise. This is where our pay should be had the council followed the steps it set in 2009."
Coleman criticized Perrin for a "lack of transparency" and a show of "favoritism" when dealing with the public.
"I won't be in anyone's back pocket," he said. "I will be held accountable for my actions."
Copenhaver, a former state representative from District 58, said he planned to wait until 2020 to run for mayor but realized Jonesboro was at a critical point in its growth and the city needs his leadership skills.
He said the city became divided after aldermen tried to impose a property maintenance code this spring that required strict upkeep of homeowners' and renters' properties. The City Council passed an ordinance initiating the code, but angry residents sought petitions to place the issue on the ballot. It was defeated heavily.
"That showed me we need a new leader," said Copenhaver, 55.
He said he wants Arkansas State University students and professors to help with issues such as the city's drainage problem. Certain areas of town are prone to flooding at least two or three times a year; city leaders have talked with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers representatives to alleviate those problems, but Copenhaver said the solution could be done locally.
"We have engineering students and professors who can help us," he said. "We need to work together on this.
"We're fighting an uphill battle. We're at a make-or-break point in the city's history. I couldn't wait for four years to run."
Dunavant, 29, has never sought an elected office, but after leading a fight against the property maintenance code several friends urged her to run.
"I've been a mayor my entire life," said Dunavant, who works in operations and logistics at a Jonesboro trucking company and helps her aunt run a 30-unit mobile home park. "I've worked with budgets and dealt with business. I've gone nose-to-nose and bossed truck drivers around before."
If elected, she said she would make pay raises for city employees her first priority.
"When employees are happy, they stay with us longer," she said, referring to the loss of 77 Jonesboro police officers over the past five years because of low pay.
She said she also will increase emergency preparedness in the city.
"I've learned if you want to be mayor, you don't call the shots," Dunavant said. "The people do. I want their voices to be heard."
Elwood considered running for mayor 12 years ago. This time, he said, he saw several issues, including pay raises, the property code and the fact that Perrin drives a $70,000 SUV while on city business.
"I drive a 1998 Dodge Ram," said Elwood, 56, who owns a tree-cutting and planting business.
He said he favors raises for public safety employees -- provided the city can afford it.
"You can't do it all in one day," he said of the needed improvements in the city. "You've got to plan it out. You start small and keep going."
He said several people indicated they will help him in finance and management if he wins his mayoral bid.
Perrin is banking on his eight years as mayor and 15 years prior as a Jonesboro alderman for his bid for re-election.
"We've gotten a lot done in eight years," he said. "We are financially stronger. I want to see things completed that we started."
Perrin, 69, has also worked in the banking industry and was on the Arkansas State University board of trustees. He serves on the Arkansas Municipal League, Arkansas Workforce Development Board and a task force for the state Highway and Transportation Department.
During his administration, Perrin has implemented a $90 million street improvement program and has overseen cleaning and repairs to the city's 300 miles of drainage ditches to reduce flooding.
"Actions over words," he said. "You have to have someone with experience to run a city with 500 employees and a budget of $65 million. Look at the past eight years and ask if we are better off now."
Street, 63, has been a Jonesboro alderman for 14 years. He is a commercial real estate appraiser and retired National Guardsman.
"I know how the city works," he said.
He opposed the property maintenance code and urged fellow aldermen to place the issue on the ballot before enacting the ordinance.
"You shouldn't shove stuff down citizens' throats," he said.
Street favors pay raises for employees, but said implementing them could hinder the city's budget in the future if officials don't find alternative revenue sources.
"Public safety is critical," Street said. "We told them we'd pay them more, but we're just kicking the can down the road. We've spent $2 million in training to replace officers we've lost."
State Desk on 10/23/2016