Two candidates squaring off for Position 4 on the council, Dave Sutherland and Buhrl “Jody” Sanders, shared their thoughts in interviews with the Tribune on the city’s current financial woes, capital projects like Unity Park and The Stroll and what they will contribute to the city if elected.

Both candidates said they’d like to see the city get back in shape financially.

“We need to go back to mayor and city council form of government and eliminate the city administrator or city manager,” Sutherland said. “We need the mayor and city council to be responsible for the day-to-day activity happening in city hall.”

He added that he believes changing the type of government will help the city run better financially and as a whole.

Sanders, on the other hand, said he thinks the keys to fixing finances are annexation, making sure there are quality employees and staying informed on what’s going on in all parts of city hall.

“This mayor and city council need to keep a lot better track of what’s going on in each department, what each employee is doing, what they’re assignment is and make sure they’re not straying from that,” he said.

He said voluntary annexation would be the best option because it would help bring in more money to the city through sales taxes, but would also be a more resident-pleasing option than forced annexation.

The two candidates also weighed in on major city projects such as Unity Park and The Stroll.

Sanders acknowledged that though both Unity Park and The Stroll were voted on before he was on the council, he thinks they’re both good for the city.

“It’s a real good thing for the city, especially to have the park,” he said. “The Stroll, that’s a nice little thing, but before we start any more projects like that we need to get the city back on track with its finances, even though those did come from 4A and 4B, which the city has no control over.”

He added that the projects don’t hurt the town and “won’t do anything but help it.”

Sutherland was cautious about the financial implications the projects could or could not have.

“I think the Stroll looks nice, I don’t see how it’s going to generate sales tax revenue,” Sutherland said. “I forsee expenses — there will be a utility bill for lights put there.”

He added that maintenance costs could be a factor if the city has to pay them rather than 4A or 4B.

“I’m very pleased with the way it looks,” he said. “I just don’t think it is going to generate any meaningful tax revenue, especially since we spent half a million to build it.”

He echoed a similar sentiment regarding Unity Park.

“Here again it’s another nice thing to have, but that’s not going to make people come in the city limits and put up a big grocery store just because a park is there,” Sutherland said.

Sutherland said his main platform in the campaign is “controlled spending.”

“I think we have enough money to work with, we just have to be careful spending it,” he said. “The function of a municipality is to provide water, roads and code enforcement. That’s what we need to do. I just don’t think we’re in a financial position to pursue all these things.”

He said if elected, he would bring in years of experience, an open mind and strong beliefs about government transparency.

“If someone wants information from city hall I think people ought to share that information with citizens,” he said. “If someone asks me a question, I’m going to try to get them the answer.”

Sutherland added that he’d like to see a judge back in the court as a head of the department and he praised the city’s code enforcement officer, saying  “he’s cleaned a lot of stuff up” and that the city “needs more of that.”

As for Sanders, he said one of the main things he’s running on is “honesty and integrity.”

“I’m really I’m really interested in getting the city back on track as far as money is concerned and I’m interested in attracting new business,” he said. “When money becomes available, fixing and re-paving streets and making sure our citizens have good city services.”

He said he is most interested what the residents want.

“I’m for what benefits all the citizens,” he said. “If the citizens vote yes, we do yes; if they vote no, we do no. That’s just the way a democracy works.”

Sutherland and his wife, Judy, have four grown children and have lived in Magnolia for the past 20 years. He previously served on the Magnolia city council for about 9 years.

Sanders and his wife have lived in Magnolia for 21 years and also have four grown children. He has not served on the council previous to last year. He currently holds the position 4 seat on the council.

Election day is May 8.

Check back with the Tribune for more profiles on candidates leading up to Election Day.

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