First, I send warm thoughts of thanks to all our mothers and grandmothers for Mother’s Day. I am involved in a lot of community activities, and have proudly served along side some of the wonderful moms in Fayette County. No one multi-tasks like a Fayette County mom.
In addition, congratulations to all of our new graduates. I am certain your families are bursting with pride over your achievement.
Former County Commission Chairman Harold Bost recently announced he was completely handing over the reins to me in the upcoming election against incumbent Jack Smith. Not only did Mr. Bost allow me the opportunity to have a one-on-one race with the incumbent, but he also generously threw his enthusiastic support behind my candidacy. Thank you, Harold, for the confidence and support.
Now that I am running solely against the incumbent Jack Smith, the local special interests are getting anxious and the personal attacks are being launched. The nasty comments have little to do with the real issues at hand for the July 20 primary election. (Whoever wins the primary gets the commission seat as there is no Democratic challenger.) Do not let their nasty comments distract you from focusing on the actions of the most alarming county commission on record.
If you would like to learn more about me and my thoughts on local political issues, please go to stevebrownfayette.blogspot.com/ for an in-depth look.
Please be aware that there are some glaring differences on some significant issues. Thus far, neither the incumbent Jack Smith (Post 4) nor his political ally Eric Maxwell (Post 5), also running for re-election, have dared to even tread lightly on these major issues, avoiding them all together.
Incumbent Smith falsely told constituents he opposed mass transit in Fayette County. But the meeting minutes from regional transit planning meetings proved he was not telling the truth. Smith has voted in favor of a regional mass transit plan that includes very expensive buses and rail in Fayette County EVERY TIME it came before him.
The transit plan Smith and his staff voted for clearly says, the “bus rapid transit regional transfer stations” are “Newnan, Peachtree City and Fayetteville” and other projects include “GA 74 Expressway Bus, Peachtree City Commuter Rail and GA 85 Arterial Rapid Bus (from Riverdale to Fayetteville)” reporting “service hours and frequency: All day, minimum 15-minute peak frequency, 30-minute off-peak” (Project Information Sheets for Elements of Concept 3, Project Analysis Information Sheet, p. 47, 48, Transit Planning Board, December 18, 2008).
How can you adamantly oppose something, as incumbent Smith claims, and vote in favor of it at every opportunity, never issuing even the slightest negative comment on the record at a single meeting? Believe his actions, not his words.
I am totally opposed to mass transit in Fayette County and I will never vote in favor of a plan that includes mass transit in our county. Not only do we not have a dense enough population, we cannot afford it. Your vote will be the mandate on mass transit in our county.
Incumbent Smith and incumbent Maxwell keep forcing the construction of the West Fayetteville Bypass on us. No one but the developers wants this useless road. No one can justify this expensive boondoggle. The Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) would not give us dime of matching federal road funds for the West Fayetteville Bypass because it rated “did not score high enough [in the evaluation process]/too expensive” and yet the commissioners are building it anyway.
The bypass is an enormous waste of money and I pledge to stop the madness and not build the final phases. Your vote in the July 20 primary will be the mandate of whether we continue this irrational road or not.
Jack Smith was appointed to the board of directors for the Bank of Georgia. The bank was created by real estate developers for real estate developers. This bank is one of a select few dedicated to heavily funding the developers and residential builders in Fayette and Coweta counties.
Why would a commissioner who votes on land planning and zoning issues for the development community take a board position on a bank for real estate developers? In fact, I believe Smith’s main reason for keeping the West Fayetteville Bypass alive is the area will be ripe for housing development once the road is complete. His bank benefits from housing development.
Another terrible blemish on incumbent Smith and incumbent Maxwell’s record is the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) they thought they could sneak by us. Their proposal was pure pork-barrel spending during a horrific economy and the voters crushed the referendum by an 8,939 to 2,852 margin.
Smith and Maxwell along with former Peachtree City Mayor Fred Brown tried to convince us that we had a duty to build unnecessary roads and bridges as well as paying the debt obligations on infrastructure for future generations of Fayette County residents.
I publicly exposed what was in the SPLOST and will not stand for such foolishness as a commissioner.
The sum total of all the irresponsible decisions on mass transit, SPLOST and the West Fayetteville Bypass would cost us hundreds of millions of dollars. I have publicly opposed Smith on all of these issues.
I have a proven track record of standing up to special interests. Incumbents Jack Smith and Eric Maxwell have a record of yielding to the special interests.
It is your money; don’t throw it away to the government for thoughtless and wasteful pet projects. I would greatly appreciate your vote in the July 20 primary election.
If you would like to help with my election campaign against the inattentive incumbents, providing a site for a campaign sign or sending a check, please send me an email.
Remember, the incumbent’s supporters will throw out lots of personal attacks, but it will not matter. The facts are against them.
Steve Brown
County Commission Candidate, Post 4
Peachtree City, Ga.
