Abingdon Town Council pt. 2

A few days after posting this regarding Abingdon’s town council race, I received visits from Rick Humphreys and Carl Mallory. In the interest of fairness, I cannot claim credit for causing their visits, but it was good to see some door to door stumping nonetheless.

Mr. Humphreys comes from a well known family in Washington County and I must admit, I cannot be totally impartial with my assessment. He is a sincere, well spoken man who seeks to preserve Abingdon’s historical atmosphere while attempting to draw more business to the downtown area.

Mr. Mallory is an interesting fellow. I feel that he is an up and comer in Abingdon politics and while I’m still as yet undecided, I feel more comfortable with him as a candidate.

In my previous post, I did not mention Cathy Castle Lowe is running for reelection. Mrs. Lowe is a business owner in Abingdon and is a first term council member.

Local, Local races

Well, it is getting close to election day. Yes, that’s right Virginia, there is an election being held on May 4. In Abingdon, there are several seats up for grabs which includes long time Council Member Dr. French Moore. Carl Mallory, Rick Humphreys and Bob Howard. Very little is being done by any of the candidates to be honest and the one who has made door knocks is the one candidate I think I’m less inclined to support. He’s a personable fellow and have reviewed his literature and bio sketch. There may be more candidates in the wood works, but doubtful since filing time has passed. I know what I get with Dr. Moore, but the appeal of fresh ideas on the town council is pretty intense as well. I look forward to seeing them get out more.

In my view, if the election were decided to day, here’s my top 3:

1. French Moore

2. Bob Howard

3. Rick Humphreys

 

Abingdon politics is a fluttering with this upcoming election, but will it flutter afterward or will we see more of the same. We want to see real jobs come to the outlying areas of town such as across from the new Lowe’s. We’d like to see a larger industrial base move into some of our older shell buildings. We’d like to see a company like TRW move to the Glade Spring Industrial Park where only Utility Trailer now resides.

Something to think about. When businesses want to relocate or open in Abingdon, why does the zoning commission and architectural review dictate why businesses should blend in to these quaint little antique shoppes when we really need is a large company with capital to invest in a site and also in the community. We should be actively searching for these kinds of opportunities. Instead, we quivel over the color of the paint or the tone of the masonry work. I hope Abingdon makes smart moves this May.