June 25, 2008 04:55 pm
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Commentary by Adam Smith
The North Jefferson News
By now, the cat’s out of the bag — Kenny Clemons has decided he will not seek a fourth term as the mayor of Gardendale.
Clemons announced his decision at a city council meeting on Monday. The purpose of the meeting was to actually decide if the city would apply for a grant that would provide federally-funded firefighters as part of FEMA’s SAFER (Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response) program.
I guess it only makes sense that Clemons would make his announcement there, as he has seemingly always made public safety high on his list of priorities through his 12 years as mayor and 24 years on the city council.
Last year, he tried, albeit unsuccessfully, to propose a property tax increase that he said would allow the city to hire more firefighters and paramedics for a growing area.
Furthermore, during my two years of covering Gardendale’s City Council meetings, Clemons was also quick to point out the good deeds and accomplishments of the city’s police officers and firefighters.
In talking to folks in our coverage area about his announcement, most people have expressed a sense of shock at the mayor’s decision to not run. Some people have said, though the field looks a little crowded, Clemons may have easily won a fourth term.
Others have said an abandoned Caufield Square development and a presumed slowdown in the city’s economic growth may have doomed his chances.
Most, however, have expressed what the man has done for the city, not what he hasn’t.
Clemons, a former educator, has made education as much of a priority as public safety. Under Clemons’ watch, the city has provided funds to every school in the city for improvements and educational programs. Clemons can also be proud that he, as mayor, was able to break ground on a new state-of-the-art Gardendale High School.
On a personal note, Mayor Kenny Clemons has always been fair with me and with this newspaper. Unlike other city officials I’ve had to deal with through this job and previous jobs, he answers my phone calls or calls me right back.
Some may say there’s no such thing as an honest politician, but I don’t believe Mayor Clemons has ever lied to me. He has a quality which I like — if he doesn’t know an answer, he’ll tell me he doesn’t know. Some hired officials like to ramble and get a reporter off a subject to hide the fact that they don’t know what they’re talking about. Clemons has never done that with me.
Unless he changes his mind at the last minute, voters won’t see his name on the ballot — they’ll see several other names of people who believe they can fill his shoes differently, or better.
But Kenny Clemons can rest easy knowing that he always did what he thought was right for the city during his 36 years of public service. And that may be worth more than any economic development could ever bring.
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