Blog 3: Mayor

In the midst of a financial crisis, Dixonville’s Mayor Frank Jones may soon lose his position to Bill Smith

            Last night, a forum was held at the Dixonville chamber of commerce where each candidate made their case as to why they should receive the chamber’s endorsement and should ultimately be elected mayor of Dixonville. With 20 minutes to address the crowd of approximately 200, mainly local business owners, each candidate concentrated on what they would bring to the table with challenger Bill Smith starting off the night.

            “My opponent’s policies have had disastrous results for this city. He took office with a budget surplus. We now have a $1 million deficit. If we elect him to another term, Dixonville will be bankrupt in a year.”

            The city is in the middle of a financial crisis, and according to its budget office is running roughly a $1 million deficit. Who would be better suited to lead the city out of debt is the question on the table. Currently, Mayor Frank Jones, a family man of 45 years old, owns a downtown hot dog and hamburger restaurant called “Frank’s Furters.”  While, Bill Smith, 38-years-old is challenging Jones for the seat. Also a father, he is a self-described “entrepreneur,” whose most recent business was selling glow-in-the-dark “I love Dixonville” ball caps. Both men are native to Dixonville but like most, have differing backgrounds. 

            Jones responded to Smith’s comment stating, “My challenger has a checkered background to say the least. To say the most, he has made reckless decisions in his life that can only lead one to question his fitness to hold public office.” Jones may be referring to Smith’s arrest at the age of 22 for possession of methamphetamine. However, Smith claims to be a different man and argued that people change and grow.

            “Yes, I was arrested for possession of narcotics at the age of 22, but it was a youthful indiscretion I should not be held accountable for at the age of 38. People change and grow. I would argue that my mistakes as a young man have given me a wisdom I might not have otherwise achieved.”

            In response to the policy that either would like to ensue, Bill Smith’s plan for closing the deficit includes closing two city parks, one on Elm Street the other on Kennedy Avenue, as well as the city’s senior center at 415 Main Street. He also proposes raising parking fees in the downtown area to raise more revenue.

            “By increasing parking fees in the downtown area, we will increase our revenue in a way that spreads the burden in an equitable manner, and it will help refill our badly depleted city coffers.”

            Despite Jones not having quite as specific a call to action, Dixonville Daily’s recent poll shows each candidate currently receiving 46 percent of the vote, a close call.

Frank Jones has not given any specifics yet on how to close the budget gap other than to call for a series of public forums to get input on where cuts should be made and then putting together a plan of spending priorities.

            Jones responded promptly, “He says two of our parks and our senior center have to be closed. Yes, painful cuts must be considered in the coming year. But to take out the bad economy on our vulnerable seniors and precious children is nothing short of cruel.” He continued on stating, “Increasing parking fees in the downtown is a business killer. We want to attract business to the downtown. More fees will only drive them to the mall, and end up costing the city more money in lost business tax revenues.”

            As the constituents listened on, likely imagining how these policies would affect their local businesses, Smith’s rebuttal noted the reason behind closing these local venues. “My economic plan does close down two city parks and our senior center, but the city is losing money. We have to be sensible about our budget. We simply can’t afford all of the services we are paying for during this crisis.”

            As voters head to the election polls on April 8^th, their decision could potentially make a sizeable change for both themselves and fellow community members. Who is to blame and whose presence may be the solution, who’s to say? Mayor Jones ended the forum on this note, "To blame the city's economic crisis on me loses sight of the bigger picture. We are in a down economy and have been faced with unanticipated cutbacks in state and federal funding. No one could have seen this coming."