A forum for candidates for office in Tyrone was held Oct. 12 at Sandy Creek High School. Among the questions posed to the candidates were those asking their perspective on zoning issues and annexations.
Featured at the forum were Mayor Eric Dial and challenger Derrick Jackson along with Post 2 Councilman Ryan Housley who is being challenged by Planning Commissioner Wil James.
Of the approximately 80 people in the audience waiting to hear from candidates from Tyrone and Peachtree City, the overwhelming majority were from Tyrone.
Dial begin the forum with his opening remarks, noting that his passion for service and to help the community evolved as his children grew. That awareness continued eight years ago when he was elected to serve on the Town Council and has continued to grow in the past four years during his term as mayor, Dial said.
“The evolution of my service has changed. It evolved into relationships that I created with the community in wanting to see what was best for the community,” Dial said. “I believe we’ve recognized huge success over these eight years. Tyrone has been recognized by outside sources based on data, (in areas such as) a low crime rate, per capita income, a low divorce rate and even the number of restaurants in the community.”
The accomplishments that led to those recognitions is indicative of the fact that our time has not been wasted, Dial said, adding that there is unfinished business to be addressed.
Jackson in his opening remarks noted his service in the U.S. Navy. Service is noteworthy, Jackson said, including as a husband whose wife was previously diagnosed with breast cancer and is now cancer-free.
“So why do I share that personal story? As a leader, life is going to be throwing so many different challenges your way. You need to have the capacity to be able to create a coalition of relationships to be able to address the needs and concerns of the citizens. I think I am not only prepared, but well-equipped to move Tyrone into the 21st century,” Jackson said.
Jackson said his intention is to earn the vote and make downtown Tyrone a place for families to enjoy any day of the week.
Housley in his remarks said he grew up in the community, is raising his family in Tyrone and runs the nonprofit HeroBox serving veterans.
“(With the mayor and council) in the past four years, with our staff and you, we’ve made Tyrone one of the best places to live in Georgia,” Housley said.
James in his opening remarks said Housley is a good friend, adding that both men coach athletics together.
“The reason why I’m running is not because we’re in opposition, it’s because we have some different ways of looking at things. Not in a negative sense, but he comes from a different background than I do,” said James. “We live in a diverse community and I think it’s time for us to show some kind of diversity on our town council.”
James and his family have lived in Tyrone for more than a decade.
One of the questions put to the candidates dealt with their perspective on zoning requests and how they would balance zoning ordinances with changed circumstances and how they would balance the needs of immediate neighbors versus the needs of the whole community.
James in responding said the first step in any rezoning request begins with an in-house assessment of the request.
“We in Tyrone have a excellent staff that will go out and put that information together. You look at that information to see the best use for the property,” said James. “Then you ask what you would like to see based on what the property is zoned for. And you have to do it within the confines of the law.”
Housley in his remarks said rezoning is a major part of the town’s land use planning.
“A big aspect of that is community feedback. We do have to couple that with what is legal and what is available,” he said. “We just finished and re-adopted our zoning ordinance which is available at www.tyrone.org.”
Jackson responded saying variances and zoning should be geared to future growth without having an adverse impact to the community.
“When you think about zoning and variances it should not create an adverse situation,” Jackson said. “But more importantly, it should be conducive for future growth. When I go and speak to developers, for example, and I ask the question (about a lot) of development within Fayetteville and Peachtree City, I ask one simple question – ‘Why not Tyrone?’ Several developers said ‘We overlook Tyrone because of your zoning, you’re not ready.’”
Noting the months-long process, Jackson said the town should for forward-leaning thinkers and be able to say what Tyrone should look like in the next 15-20 years.
“(And) we don’t want to create an adverse impact to the current business owners and citizens,” Jackson said.
Dial in his remarks cited a past zoning and variance request to illustrate how the town works with developers while living up to its responsibilities to the community.
“Variances and zoning are not so attractive until it happens to you, and then it’s very important,” said Dial.
Citing the example, Dial noted what was to be a doctor’s office adjacent to the Waffle House on Ga. Highway 74 that was to be the county’s first location for Emory Healthcare. The town worked with the developer, successfully working through a hardship that the town had created involving overlays and setbacks impacting the odd-shaped property. The two people who would have been principles in the office lost their lives in an accident and the project never went forward, Dial said.
“That’s an example of how government works with property owners and developers to try to meet their needs. If it’s a hardship that we have caused we have to address that. So it’s important that the town is flexible enough and doesn’t just act of their desires. If we want something to be on a certain property, we can’t bend the rules. If we don’t something on a certain property, we can’t ben the rules.”
Another question dealt with the candidates’ perspective on the role of elected officials in dealing with annexations.
Dial in his response said, “Annexation has not occurred much in the eight years I’ve been in leadership with Tyrone.”
“I represent Tyrone, I don’t represent south Tyrone, north Tyrone, east or west. There’s no one neighborhood I represent more than another. And that’s the way it will always be for me,” Dial said. “I feel like I’ve gone from representing (my family) to representing 7,000. I don’t view Tyrone as a new Tyrone or an old Tyrone. I rarely even hear that term except for the last couple of weeks. That doesn’t even register with me. I represent Tyrone and I’m proud of it.”
Jackson followed, saying he recently visited a subdivision and was told that the residents could not vote for him because they do not live in the town. He was told those residences paid taxes and received services from Tyrone. Jackson said they should be able to vote.
“Every citizen in the U.S. should be able to vote,” Jackson said. “So when I think about annexation I want to make sure that we reach out to those areas and let them know what the pros and cons are on annexation. But more importantly than anything else, they should be able to voice their concerns to their representative and they should be able to select their representative.”
Pertaining to “old” and “new” Tyrone, Jackson says he, too, dismisses that notion.
“We are one Tyrone,” he said. “I’m about building a coalition.”
Housley said his responsibility on annexations is to make an unbiased decision based on the information presented.
“In the past four years we haven’t seen the issue come up a lot,” Housley said, noting that, unlike other areas in Fayette, Tyrone does not see much in the way of annexation requests. “We sign up to serve all of you, not old or new Tyrone. And in the past four years that’s what we’ve done.”
James in his remarks said annexation could be appropriate for smaller areas that border the town.
“As we continue to expand and grow, sometime there are small pockets that are touching our borders that we will have to bring into the fold,” James said. “And we can bring them into the fold by talking to the residents, giving them the pros and cons and see exactly what they would like to do and how they would like to do it.”
A final question dealt with whether a viable use should be found for the former Tyrone Elementary School. All the candidates believed that was the case.
The forum was sponsored by the Fayette Chamber of Commerce, the NAACP Fayette Branch, the Fayette County Democratic Committee, Fayette County Republican Party and the Fayette County Issues Tea Party.
