INCUMBENTS HOLD FOUR OF FIVE SEATS IN WALKER COUNTY MUNICIPAL RACES
Four of five incumbents in Walker County’s city elections Nov. 2 fended off their competition.
Only incumbent Donald Martin in Chickamauga lost his seat, being edged out by newcomer Rhonda Jacks to take one of the three at-large seats.
”I am ready to go to work for every citizen of Chickamauga and I really appreciate the trust that they have placed in me,” said Jacks, a life-long county resident who has served as the president of the Tennessee PeriAnesthesia Association and volunteered on several political campaigns.
She attributed her victory to relationships and hard work. She said she and her team made phone calls, knocked on doors and placed more than 150 signs.
She said her first goal is to have an “amazing Christmas celebration” in Chickamauga that highlights the city and allows people to celebrate close to home.
She will then shift her focus to improving downtown, increasing tourism and improving relationships with small businesses.
”We need to really get behind these businesses in order to provide more options for our residents as well as visitors,” she explained, adding she will look for ways to make the special community even better.
Chickamauga
Incumbents Randal Dalton and Evitte Parrish maintained their seats in the field that included challengers James D. Powell and Kenneth “Kenny” Evans.
Dalton owns Tennessee Stone Co. and Five Point Storage in Chickamauga. He has served on the council for 28 years, with the past 14 years as mayor pro-tem and police commissioner.
Evans worked for the city of Chickamauga for 24 years, including stints in he electrical, water and street crew and finishing his career with the city’s police department. Evans said he plans to continue following city and county officials as they “fulfill their service” to the community.
After the holidays, he will ponder possibly moving forward in politics
and intends to advocate for the community’s concerns and needs.
Evans noted that COVID-19 precautions posed a challenge during campaigning for both incumbents and newcomers; he speculated that COVID could have been a factor in the turnout.
Martin has owned a business in Walker County for 44 years. He has served as city chaplain for 25 years and a city councilman for the past six years.
Parrish, a 36-year resident of the county, currently serves as vice president for BancorpSouth Bank and has served 12 years on Chickamauga City Council.
“I believe the people in Chickamauga are happy with our high quality of life and the continuous improvements that we are making,” Parrish said when asked about his victory. “I think that they also know that I am always available to talk to if they have questions or ideas for the city.”
Parrish said his immediate top priority is to continue promoting downtown Chickamauga by advertising downtown events and through a “shop local” campaign.
Parrish promoted Chilimauga, a chili cookoff and street fair on Saturday, Nov. 13, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; for more information, go to www.Chilimauga.com. He urges everyone to stay tuned to learn more about the upcoming Downhome Christmas celebration, which he said will be a great family event.
Powell said during the campaign that he would like to eliminate the Battlefield Overlay District because “it stifles economic growth around the Highway 27 area of Chickamauga. It has served its original purpose and needs to go.”
Dalton, Martin and Powell did not respond to requests for comment for this article.
LaFayette
Hakie Shropshire, who previously ran for as a Democrat for a spot on the Walker County Board of Commissioners, failed to unseat incumbent Beacher Garmany for LaFayette’s Ward 1 seat.
”I don’t trust anyone that has money and power in the City of LaFayette,” said Shropshire, who owns Ash Kickin BBQ in LaFayette with his wife.
He was critical of the city’s spending $350,000 for three lots and its inaction when city officials were aware he and some volunteers were cleaning “25 years of dirt and grass from a 60-yearold broken sidewalk in west LaFayette and didn’t even offer to help.”
Garmany did not show up after Shropshire challenged him to help, council member Chris Davis watched the volunteers working from a red light, and council member Judy Meeks, who lives nearby, has made no attempt to fix it during her multiple terms in office, he said. He said the broken pavement in front a disabled man’s house on Daugherty Street is so muddy that the man has difficulty accessing his mailbox; meanwhile, the city is paving side streets that could wait off Main Street and beside a downtown business.
”They don’t care about the people in west LaFayette,” he said. “It’s all about money and looking good for friends and family.”
He said he does not want to work with anyone in local politics.
Garmany was first elected in 2013 in a runoff against Robert Wardlaw. He did not respond to a request
for comment for this article.
Rossville
Incumbent Jonathan Lassetter staved off a field of challengers to keep one of two at-large seats on the Rossville City Council and will be joined by newcomer Todd Franklin after Rick Buff did not qualify to seek reelection. Other candidates were Tobey Hill, Chuck Brittain and Milton Blevins Jr.
”My top priority after being re-elected is the same as it was when I ran in my first term, which is I want to do what’s best for the City of Rossville and for those citizens who chose to call Rossville home,” Lassetter said. “I want to see it become a town everyone is proud of again.”
His other priorities include business recruitment, rehabilitating downtown buildings, increasing community engagement and working with the new councilman and the prior administration to make the any necessary changes “to make Rossville the Rossville everyone wants it to be,” he stated.
Lassetter said many voters told him they are tired of the “What’s in it for me?” mind set. He attributes his victory to voters who want to put the city’s best interests first.
He said he will strive to be a “clear, unbiased voice to improve Rossville while doing what’s morally and ethically correct” and hopes to make his supporters and non-supporters proud.
Brittain’s work experience included employment as a purchasing manager with GE Capital and owner of a
restaurant. Because he was exposed to COVID-19 about five weeks before the election and then tested positive, was attacked by a dog and was unable to meet as many voters as he would have liked over those weeks, he said he feels positive about connections he made with voters with whom he spoke.
“I am a fairly new resident who received 101 votes out of 268 voters,” Brittain said. “This shows that the residents with whom I was able to engage are frustrated with the lack of positive direction of the city. They were interested in someone who had business experience and a vision to move the city forward.
“Many of these residents now want to be active in the city, just like myself. We will be demanding better communication between the city and the community,” he said. “We will be watching the elected leaders carefully, and we will hold them accountable.”
Hill is the marketing director on the board for an area nonprofit that promotes opportunities for people in Chattanooga and the Northwest Georgia areas to participate in theater and the performing arts. He has a background in law enforcement and firefighting and has worked as a marketing consultant and a data analyst.
Franklin, Hill and Blevins did not respond to requests for comment for this article.