Incumbent Johnson keys on infrastructure, economy

Beyond looking for fresh vegetables, Albany's Saturday Farmers' Market is a time for Mayor Alex Johnson II to count strollers. He's looking to see how many kids are going to fill the city's schools, he said, and it's an important tally for him.

"That's the future of Albany," Johnson, an insurance broker, told Mid-Valley Media at his business office this week. He's been at City Hall since 2018, first as a city councilor. He's now looking to win a fourth two -yea r term as Albany's mayor and is running against former City Councilor Carolyn McLeod and Albany resident Josh Wark in the nonpartisan Nov. 3 election.

And Albany's future is always on his mind, particularly the next generation's.

Johnson didn't start out in Albany. He grew up in El Centro in Southern California. Joining the Navy allowed him to see the world beyond the Golden State for a decade. It also landed him in Portland for Fleet Week visits. That sparked an interest in the Willamette Valley, and he and his family settled in Albany in 1994. Johnson eventually went into insurance, opening his own business, TrueLife Financial Solutions, in 2017.

With the encouragement of then Albany City Councilor Ray Kopczynski, his next-door neighbor, Johnson ran to succeed him in City Hall in 2018. Only two years later he won a tight race against longtime Mayor Sharon Konopa. Now, he's coming up on his sixth year in office.

Running efficient meetings, wrapping up the long-planned waterfront project, and organizing Albany's "If I Were Mayor Contests" for local students are among his points of pride.

"Our children are amazing," he said. "Whenever a teacher invites me off to talk to their classrooms, I go."

More challenging times in his tenure have included the council's approval of the city services fee, which upset many in the community, he said. Looking at the new utility fee to begin paying for a backlog in road maintenance has been another stressful issue.

"It's going to cost money, no matter how we do it. It's going to affect everyone, no matter how we do it," Johnson said.

As for actually voting to approve a street fee, he'll have no say unless the six-member council deadlocks, though Johnson isn't adverse. In 2024, he broke a tie in a vote to give the city the power to establish such a fee. He voted "yes," he said, because he knew Albany's local streets were crumbling and didn't want to keep pushing the issue to future councils.

Beyond the streets, Johnson said his priorities follow the city's strategic plan that outlines goals like "Reliable and Sustainable Infrastructure" and a "Healthy Economy." In the latter, Johnson wants to see a grocery store in South Albany, like other City Council hopefuls. That's been on his radar since day one, he said.

One thing city leaders need to remember, according to Johnson: They won't be here forever. He'll never enjoy the shade of the trees planted for the Waterfront project, he said.

"I'm not here for me," he added. "It's for the community going forward, and if one child says, 'I'm going to run for City Council, I'm going to move back to Albany,' then I've done my job."

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