Municipal election candidates speak at forum
SPRUCE PINE — The Republican Women of Franklin County (RWFCA) held a political forum Aug. 12 at the Frog Pond community center for candidates of any party running in the Aug. 26 municipal elections .
Candidates attending were: Phil Campbell – Mayor Eddie Marbutt, Thomas Inman (running for Council #3), Greg Williams (running for mayor). Red Bay – Kathryn Cantrell Wilkins (running for Council #3) Russellville – Guadalupe Martinez (running for mayor), Darren Woodruff (incumbent, Council #2), Hunter Smith (running for Council #2), Donnie Horton (running for Council #3), Robbie Richardson (running for Council #5).
GREG WILLIAMS
RWFCA President Denel Wardell spoke about the importance of municipal elections as she welcomed participants and audience members.
“We want to make sure that people are getting out there and voting,” Wardell said. “I know, notoriously, municipal elections and primary elections have poor turnout.”
Phil Campbell
Incumbent Mayor Eddie Marbutt spoke first. Marbutt was appointed mayor following the resignation of the town’s former mayor, Michael McQuary, in April. He was serving on the town council at the time he was appointed.
TOM INMAN
Marbutt said since he took over as mayor he has been “doing a lot of fence mending.”
“We didn’t have a good working relationship with NACOLG (North Alabama Council of Local Governments), nor with our state leaders, and that’s been pretty tough because you need NACOLG’s input,” he said.
KATHRRYN CANTRELL WILKINS
“You can’t do what needs to be done without grants,” Marbutt added. “That’s something that you’ve got to have, so I’ve been trying to rebuild relationships with our state representatives and with NACOLG, and I’ve come a long way with that.”
He said he wants to get the industrial park annexed into the town limits, noting that since it is outside the limits, Phil Campbell doesn’t get taxes on it.
“That’s something that I really want to try to get done,” Marbutt said. “We need that tax base. We need all the money we can get.”
LUPE MARTINEZ
Marbutt said he hoped “within the next week or so” that the town would be signing a lease agreement with the Franklin County Board of Education.
“They are going to lease our baseball fields and two fields as a softball facility,” he said. “That’s going to be a great improvement – the county will be able to spend some money there. The school system actually uses our city facilities. This lease agreement will allow the county to spend the money they need to do the necessary improvements for the fields.”
Marbutt said he and the council have tried to upgrade “everything in all of the departments,” noting when their administration began the Street Department was lacking in equipment and the Police Department was using worn out cars.
DARREN WOODRUFF
He then spoke about the ongoing situation of some of the downtown buildings in Phil Campbell, what Marbutt referred to as the “revitalization of Broad Street” and cited as probably the biggest project he’s been working on.
“That’s something that I set out to do before I became mayor, and once I became mayor, I pledged to get that done and to really push forward on that,” Marbutt said, noting that it had been “a challenge.”
“It’s really a probably that we’ve had for, I would say, 30 years,” Marbutt added. “It’s (the situation) been neglected and passed along and passed along over so many times that now it’s to the point that it has to have attention.”
DONNIE HORTON
Marbutt called it “ongoing” and “long term,” but said the town is “definitely moving along with that.”
Marbutt’s challenger, Greg Williams, spoke next. Williams said he is an engineer with construction experience and has lived in Phil Campbell all of his life and wants to see the town grow.
“I’m glad to see anybody doing something to these buildings in Phil Campbell,” he said, “and that was my main concern on the reason why I decided to run for mayor – to get something done with the buildings.”
ROBBIE RICHARDSON
Williams said he appreciates what Marbutt has been doing.
“We just gotta move forward and work together and try to make our town grow,” Williams added. “That’s the main thing. And we all need to make sure that we all get out and vote.”
Tom Inman spoke next. He said he’s “recently out of Nebraska,” noting he’s “new to municipal government” and that he plans on “being a sponge” to learn and support and protect the community.
Red Bay
Kathryn Cantrell Wilkins, running for Place 3 on the Red Bay City Council, spoke, saying this election is her “first foray” into politics.
“My family’s been in Franklin County since the early 1800s,” Wilkins said. “I’ve been involved in several different things over the years, at church and different things in the city. I can remember the first time I voted in an election, and I was thrilled to death. Good luck to everybody.”
Russellville
Guadalupe Martinez is running against incumbent Mayor David Grissom. Martinez said he was born in Garden Grove, California, and that he came to Russellville when his parents moved the family from California in 1998.
DENEL WARDELL
“I practically grew up in Russellville,” he added. “I always tell people I’m glad I grew up in Russellville because I would be a completely different person if I was somewhere else.”
Martinez said he’s a firm believer in the idea that everything happens for a reason, adding, “God is steering us in the right direction. Regardless of what the outcome will be.”
He said he’s “very excited” to be doing what he’s doing and called meeting all the new people he’s encountered during the campaign “a blessing.”
“It’s just been an eyeopener,” Martinez added. “I think the more important thing to understand is to be politically informed so that we know what’s going on with our society regardless of what level it is.”
Martinez said he has always been a conservative Republican, what he called “paleoconservative.” He encouraged the audience to “stay informed” and not to shy away from a challenge.
Incumbent Russellville Place 2 council member Darren Woodruff spoke next.
Woodruff said the city had spent “probably over a million dollars” in District 2 over the last three years, for asphalt and flooding problems, including replacing culverts, cleaning out ditches, cutting trees and chasing dogs and speeders.
“We have some economic development stuff we’re working on,” Woodruff continued. “It hasn’t come to pass yet.”
Woodruff said if someone calls him that he answers the call.
Running for city council Place 3, Johnny Horton spoke next.
Horton said he’s been a resident of Franklin County most of his life, having lived in Belgreen and in Russellville.
“My dad was a former city councilman in Russellville in the 1970s, serving two terms,” Horton said. “I want to follow his footsteps and help our city.”
Horton said he thinks there’s a lack of connection between the cities and the county and that he wants to strive to work on changing that.
“There’s some opportunities out here that we’re not taking advantage of,” Horton said.
He spoke about wanting people to work together instead of against each other.
“What’s good for Phil Campbell might be good for Russellville,” he said. “What’s good for Red Bay might be good for the rest of the county. We need to work together for the betterment of our citizens, our students and our loved ones. We need to bring economic growth to Russellville.”
Horton said he’s been in retail for 58 years, and that he spent 14 years traveling the country across 45 states building and opening stores for Family Dollar and Dollar General, which he said amounted to 800 stores during that time.
Horton said he wants to help Russellville but also the entire county.
“We need to get grants to improve our areas.” He suggested the idea of a state park in Franklin County, stating it might be possible if everyone worked together.
“Why don’t we try it?” he asked.
Robbie Richardson spoke next. He’s running for the District 5 city council position.
“I don’t think our cities have done a real good job working together,” Richardson said. “When all our cities are doing well, the whole county does well. I encourage all of you not to forget, when this election is over, that people have good ideas, and it doesn’t have to be your idea. If somebody else has a good idea, go with it.”
