Candidates

for two county commission races took to the

outdoors last week for a public forum at the

Holiday Inn Express sponsored by the Chamber of

Commerce.

As

could be expected, some of the questions related

directly to business issues, along with other key

matters such as traffic and general county

services.

Participating

were Carl Davis, Frank Oakley, and A.G.

VanLandingham from Post 1; and incumbent Harold

Bost and Chris Ramig from Post 3. All five are

Republicans.

Here's

how the candidates answered the prepared

questions thrown at them by moderator Doug

Warner:

What

role do you feel business plays in our community?

What is your commitment to the citizens of

Fayette County to diversify the tax base to

lessen the burden on the single-family homeowner?

VanLandingham

said local business people carry a big tax

burden, which is important, but business growth

presents a Catch-22 of sorts: bringing in

business means bringing in growth. The county

must be selective in what business it attracts,

and because business plays a big role in

community life, the business community should

have more say in some of what happens in the

community.

Davis

said business has an important role in Fayette

and the county should tap into its expertise as

all entities work together for a better quality

of life. Maintaining county services while

lessening the tax burden on homeowners is

important, and the county must have a strategic

plan in place and follow it to provide a

diversified economic base.

Oakley

pointed out that business is absolutely essential

because it fuels the capitalistic system in this

country. In Fayette, the focus should be on

clean, high-tech, necessary business as long as

the county continues to have a strong educational

base. The county is doing a good job making

business blend in with the community, but can do

even better.

Bost

said the county

needs a balanced tax base, noting that while

residential property owners require $3 in

services for every $1 paid in taxes, businesses

are closer to a 1-1 ratio. Working to bring in

more new business than new people would help to

avoid a negative impact on the county. Bost said

he is against tax incentives for business.

Ramig

agreed, saying that he saw no good reason for tax

incentives. He added that business growth is

important for the overall quality of life in

Fayette.

Should

Peachtree City annex the so-called West Village?

Do you support Tyrone's initiative to get

sanitary sewer service from Fairburn to help in

the building of an office park on Hwy. 74?

Oakley

said that if the proper study is done, Tyrone

should be allowed to expand. Acknowledging that

he does not have all the facts on the West

Village, he said the people of Peachtree City

must let the leadership know their desires. If he

had the requisite information, he would make his

decision in favor of the people of Peachtree City

and Fayette County.

Davis

called annexation a complex issue, with pros and

cons on both sides, but a team is in place

working on it. The citizens should be heard, he

added, and all impacted areas should be

considered. The county would have to go through

Peachtree City to provide services if it remained

unincorporated, but Peachtree City's density

might be too much growth to suit some. He

suggested letting the task force run its course,

and said he would have to review the issues in

Tyrone before making a recommendation.

Van

Landingham said annexation is `dramatic' any time

it is done, and it should be considered by other

entities in Fayette. There is a lot of evidence

of county impact, he added, saying the county

will have to support roads outside the city

limits. Noting that Tyrone has already made its

wishes known on the subject, he said a move like

this is not good without input from other

municipalities.

Ramig

said annexation is Peachtree City's business to a

large extent, but if it stays unincorporated the

county should apply its land use plan, and all

government entities should work together to

achieve the best solution.

Bost

gets nervous whenever he hears about annexation,

he said, and density grows nearly every time it

happens. He would rather see the West Village

develop at one to two units per acre, and does

not feel good about what could happen there but

it is a decision Peachtree City has to make. He

added that he would not support a Tyrone-Fairburn

sewer move, saying it would eventually open up

all of northern Fayette to sewer.

Is

there a duplication of services problem between

the incorporated bodies and the county? Would you

be in favor of privatizing county services, i.e.

contracting with a for-profit organization, such

as water system management, law enforcement, and

fire and rescue services?

Ramig

said privatizing poses questions of county

control and what to do about rising costs, and

while there is "probably too much"

duplication in the county now, there is not a

real crunch at the present time.

Bost

noted that House Bill 489 addresses this issue to

some extent, and Fayette governments were working

on it even before that was passed. The biggest

issue currently undone is that of fire protection

between Fayette and Peachtree City, he added.

While there is some duplication in law

enforcement, he doesn't see consolidation any

time soon and is not convinced privatizing is the

answer for all of these kinds of problems.

Oakley

said duplication of effort exists, but it should

only be changed if the citizens want it, and

politics should be kept out of it.

VanLandingham

said he favors some consolidation, if services

are not lost, but privatizing usually means a

decrease in service and a loss of control,

although he would look at it closely.

Davis

reiterated the fact that HB489 has covered much

of this ground already, and said that before

privatizing the county must look closely at

control and quality issues.

How

would you classify yourself regarding growth in

the community? Is growth inevitable? What, if

any, is the difference between population and

economic growth? What avenues do you believe are

available to control growth? Do you support the

county Development Authority efforts to help

existing businesses grow and help recruit new

business to Fayette County? Would you help in the

recruitment process of a new business to the

county?

Davis

said growth is inevitable and the county must

have a strategic plan for it, which includes

following the county land use plan and keeping it

up to date. The Development Authority and the

county government should work together to bring

clean businesses to Fayette.

Oakley

stressed managed growth, saying that economic

growth cannot outpace manpower.

VanLandingham

noted that Fayette "can't help but

grow," but county leadership must help it

grow, attracting businesses that will last and

diversify the tax base. He added that developers

are not the "bad guys" they are often

perceived to be, pointing out that governments

let them do what they do.

How

do you hope to improve the traffic situation in

Fayette County? What is your position on mass

transit? What is your position on funding and

supporting transportation issues that impact

Fayette County such as a dedication of an ongoing

one mill of tax to be restricted and solely used

for capital improvements or the use of a LOST for

funding capital improvement projects?

Oakley

said all transportation questions are related to

each other, and the county needs good planning to

answer them.

VanLandingham

said more cooperation is needed from all sectors

of the community, including business. "The

more roads you build, the more traffic you

have," he said. While he feels smart,

careful growth can help Fayette get through its

traffic troubles, mass transit would just make an

even larger jail necessary.

Bost

said everyone in Fayette accepts the fact that

there is a traffic problem. He has been pushing

the East Fayette bypass for some time and says it

is needed now. He hopes it can be in the plans

for 2005-2006, and says Coweta and Spalding have

already OKd it, with Clayton not expected to be a

problem. Work on TDK Boulevard is also moving

forward, he said. Bost sees the possibility of

giving citizens the option of voting on a 1-cent

tax for these needs in the future, saying,

"We need more roads, and they will not come

cheap."

Ramig

concurred that Fayette traffic is bad, but he

feels mass transit is not the answer. People

should be convinced to plan their trips better,

which would be more environmentally conscious

while reducing gridlock.

Why

do you want to be a commissioner? What are your

goals for your term? What experiences in your

life will make you a good county commissioner?

Davis

said, "I discovered that I must be part of

the process to have solutions," and that's

why he got involved in this race.

Oakley

said he feels under-represented, and can

contribute partly because he has been in public

services his entire adult life.

VanLandingham

said less government is best, and since he is not

smart enough to invent any new government, he is

probably the best candidate.

In

what ways will you try to improve communication

between the commission and the constituents and

between opposing constituents? How will you

determine the `will of the people'?

VanLandingham

said keeping the public informed is key, and

while it is not practical to let the public

actually decide every issue, citizens should talk

to their representatives often to be properly

informed.

Oakley

said proper lines of communication can make

people feel they are talking to the top, and

commissioners should have specific open-door

policies as well as an Internet presence to get

their information out.

Davis

said communication is critical in government and

business, and he is willing to talk to any and

all who wish to talk to him, noting that his

e-mail address is on his literature for whoever

wishes to contact him.

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