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ST. MARYS - Voters in the 4th Ward of St. Marys will have a choice between two local women to represent them on city council during the Nov. 4 general election. It's the only contested city council race this year.
Incumbent Democrat Arienne Childrey, appointed to the seat by the county's Democratic party in January, will go up against Republican Erin Buchanan for the seat previously held for 20 years by the late Robin Willoughby.
Willoughby, a Democrat, resigned from office on Jan. 1, due to health issues. She died in March following an extended illness.
Childrey, 42, lives in St. Marys with her husband Jeremy, and said she aims to advocate for those who feel they are often ignored by city officials.
"I know that I'm somebody they'll be able to call, they'll be able to talk to, and rather than having their concerns pushed off or, being convinced by something that the administration says," she said. "We've got a lot of people that'll advocate on behalf of the administration, and that's great, but we need people who are going to advocate on behalf of the people who actually live here, not just the people who work in city government."
Buchanan, 32, who resides in St. Marys with her husband Prestin and their three children, said she was motivated to pursue the 4th Ward seat because, she too, has a desire to advocate for the residents of the 4th Ward.
"I want residents to feel that they are heard and informed," Buchanan said. "(There are) a lot of unanswered questions about our local government and I believe transparency is key to bring trust and in building that trust. I don't think our government is bad. I want to be very clear: I don't think our government is bad at all. But as with any other organization, we can always do better."
If elected, Childrey said she'd like to focus on supporting the city's small businesses.
"One of the things I really want to see is something like a business incubator in town. We have a number of new businesses coming in and that's great," she said. "But I want to make sure that … they've got the tools to actually succeed."
Childrey said while living in Virginia she saw business incubators work wonders in small communities.
"Now, in their particular case, it was literally a building where small businesses could get their start," Childrey said. "And part of that was there was the support mechanism. A random accountant, they'd have come in and they would volunteer their time to give a basic business accounting class with the members of the business incubator, to help them on their books. I would like to see some sort of program like that, perhaps something really working with the chamber in concert with the city."
Also, she said she'd like to look further into the city's current policies on building inspections, in light of the building collapse that killed one and injured another in downtown St. Marys over the summer.
"We have a lot of old buildings, (and) after what recently happened, (it) really makes me question, do we have other places that have problems?" she said. "And how are we going to ensure that they continue to be safe places? Because one incident like this was one too many."
Though she doesn't have a specific policy or initiative she'd like to pursue if elected, Buchanan said her main goal would be to close a perceived gap in communication between city hall and the community.
"I plan on collaborating with other city council members, the city staff and community organizations to increase transparency. So that's one big thing is I would like our constituents to have more transparency on what is going on and the why behind it," she said. "I think the why behind it is very, very important, and kind of (showing) how we got to this decision."
Buchanan continued that she'd like voters to know that if elected, she will be here for them.
"I like to advocate for people and that's just me by nature. I like to keep … things neutral and then kind of state my opinion on where I believe things should be landed," she said.
Childrey said that her more than 20 years in retail, combined with the fact that she too, like many in the 4th Ward, lives paycheck to paycheck, make her more than qualified for the position of city councilor.
"No. 1, in my career, what I did was I led a team of around three to 400 (people) in a store. On top of that, I had 10 stores under my belt for a number of different programs that I had to visit to ensure that we were being compliant," she said. "On top of that, I'll tell you what I honestly think is the most relevant experience for public service, especially for this office. And that is the fact that I am a paycheck-to-paycheck worker, just like the constituents in my ward. I understand what it (means) when the government of any type keeps asking for more money, and I understand that when they do, they better have a damn good reason for it if they expect those of us that are struggling to get by to pay it."
Buchanan has worked in HR for about 10 years, and she said that her ability to stay neutral and see both points of view before coming to her own opinion is perfect for council.
"I bring a very neutral background (that allows me) to see both sides of it, not pick a side, just stay neutral, but also voice my own opinion on things," she said. "I do have a little bit, over a year, of (experience in) government HR in my career path. So, I do know how organizations like city government work."
