Two of three Greenup commission seats on ballot

April 23--GREENUP -- Two of three commission seats are up for grabs in Greenup County this fall, and both will involve primary contests to determine the ballot lineup in the November election.

Democratic primary voters will choose their candidates for the second and third districts and Republican primary voters will pick a candidate for the third.

The Democratic primary victor in the second district will face Republican incumbent Tony Quillen in November. Quillen is unopposed in the primary.

Democratic second district candidates include Soc Clay and Richard Howerton.

Clay, 78, is a longtime outdoor journalist and political activist. Howerton, 41, is a civil engineer and owner of Howerton Engineering and Surveying.

Each has run for the commission once before, Clay in 1968 and Howerton in 2010. Both lost.

Both candidates hope to address flood plain issues. Clay called for remapping of the region based on recent data that would revise findings of the limits of the flood plain.

He hopes the result would be that more of the county would be categorized as out of the flood plain; the potential result being higher property value and increased potential for development.

Clay also would seek funding for upgrades at Greenbo Lake State Resort Park, which he says is losing ground against other parks in the Kentucky state park system.

Howerton said he has a plan to lower flood insurance rates by establishing a community rating system developed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. He estimates an immediate drop of about 5 percent if the system is adopted and a potential drop of up to 45 percent over time.

He also called for pursuit of conservation improvements such as boat launch areas on the Little Sandy River and Tygart Creek. The improvements would bring kayak and canoe enthusiasts to the county, he said.

In the third district Democratic primary, Tom Crump and Randy Ashley are facing incumbent Billy Ray Stephens.

Crump, 52, is principal at Argillite Elementary School. Ashley, 47, is a mechanic at AK Steel. He also is a founding member of the Little Sandy Volunteer Fire Department and assistant chief of its Danleyton Station.

Stephens has served two terms on the commission and said the commission has worked hard to bring jobs to the county and keep the roads repaired.

He said among the commission's most pressing priorities are getting water to people in areas where lines remain damaged from winter breakage, bringing more jobs to the county, helping its older residents and making Greenup County debt-free.

He also called for a strong program of repair for weather-ravaged roads in the county.

Ashley ran for commissioner in 2010 and lost; Crump has never run for office before.

Infrastructure on the Industrial Parkway is a top priority because improvements would make more property developable adjacent to the highway, Ashley said. Job creation is another priority, said Ashley, who estimated the county currently loses more jobs than are created.

Crump called for similar infrastructure improvements, cleanup of blighted properties, road repairs, and a better approach to job creation by insisting on long-term commitments from any business accepting incentives or grant money to locate in the county.

Rick Wilson and Ernie Duty II face off on the third district GOP ticket.

Wilson is a retired businessman who owned recycling, towing and welding businesses. He has run for the commission three times before, the first two times as a Democrat before switching parties.

Duty, 34, works at King's Daughters Medical Center Ohio in the human resources department and previous to that worked in banking and finance. He is associate pastor of Etna Baptist Church in Pedro, Ohio.

Wilson said the county needs to be more aggressive in getting more businesses to locate in its borders and needs to market property on the Industrial Parkway. Some land adjacent to the parkway would be suitable for a large park to bring people and business to the region. The county also needs a new jail, he said.

Duty called for more transparency in county government, including scheduling evening meetings rather than the current 9:30 a.m. time. Evening meetings would allow more working constituents to attend, he said.

Recording meetings and streaming them online also would enhance transparency, he said.

Duty also said the wide availability of land shows there is room for business growth in the county.

Democrat Mike Hieneman is running unopposed in the primary and general elections for the first district.

MIKE JAMES can be reached at [email protected] or (606) 326-2652.

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