Six incumbents file as 2017 campaign kicks off: Challenger to Broadway board also files Friday

July 08--Six of the seven people who filed Friday to run in the 2017 municipal elections had a similar message -- continuing what they started.

Each member of the Sanford City Council whose term is expiring and two members of the Broadway Town Commissioners officially submitted their paperwork to return to the seats they've held, kicking off the campaign season. One challenger for the Broadway board filed as well.

Sanford Mayor Chet Mann, who had announced his intention to run for a second term, also filed Friday, saying he was hoping to keep doing what he had been doing. Mann works as a mortgage broker for OVM Financial in Sanford.

"I think it's important to finish what we started," Mann said. "It's been a privilege, and now we're looking forward to the next four years to bring the investment in, keep improving the quality of life, see this thing through to make Sanford the best community in North Carolina."

Mayor Pro Tem Sam Gaskins filed for his third term on the council, hoping to continue to represent Ward 1. A chemistry professor at Guilford Technical Community College, he spoke Friday about continuing work on the park and greenway bonds the city passed in 2013.

"We've done so much in these past four years, especially, and there's so much ongoing," Gaskins said. "I'd like to see it through, see it finished. There's a lot that we're going through with the expansion out at the (Central Carolina) Enterprise Park and the sewer line going up to Moncure. There's just so much going on, it's a very exciting time and I'd like to see that through."

Councilman James "J.D." Williams re-filed, seeking to hold the seat he's held since 1995. Williams, who runs an insurance business, spoke specifically about helping recruited industries cross the line and bring new business to Sanford.

"We've got a lot of unfinished business that needs taken care of," he said. "A lot of things that have not been publicized in the way of some industry right on the verge of locating here that we're pushing for. There's a lot of stuff on the table. I'd like to be a part of that, and it seems they want me to be a part of it."

Councilman Norman "Chas" Post III, the youngest of the four at 33, said he re-filed to "see through" the "tremendous progress" since he was first elected to the council in 2013. He is a partner at the Doster, Post, Foushee, Post & Patton law firm in Sanford.

"Everything I campaigned on, we have delivered on it, and I want to continue to support the city that I love," Post said Friday. "My door is always open to any Sanford citizen. I want to be the guy they can call when they need something, from 'The guy's not picking up my trash on time' to 'I want to open up a business.' Anything that the citizens need, I want to be there for them."

No Republican challengers filed for council seats on Friday, but they still have two weeks to do so. Lee County GOP Chairman Jim Womack told The Herald in March that there were "at least two seats that are definitely in our scope right now, and hopefully more."

Janet Harrington and Jim Davis, members of the Broadway Town Commissioners, also filed Friday and were joined in the race by challenger Jim Paschal.

Harrington is seeking her second term on the board. She said her love of Broadway and desire to complete work on things such as the new Town Hall motivated her to run again.

"I've got projects that I've not completed and things I want done," she said. "That's one thing, and I enjoy it. I would not want my term to end and then everything to take place in January. I want to do that. I want to be there for that."

Davis, the first person to file on Friday and a former Broadway town manager, echoed Harrington.

"I would like to see a few of the projects on the drawing board for the town of Broadway completed," he said. "I spent 45 years with the town of Broadway. I have put a lot in it, and I'd like to see a lot of it come through. I enjoy the work. I've been in public service all my life, and that's why I'm running."

Paschal is the brother of the late Nathan "Ed" Paschal, who served on the Lee County Board of Commissioners for 20 years, and Lila Nielsen, also a former commissioner. He works as an account representative for Dunn-based office supplies dealer Office Value.

"I would like to give back to Broadway because I think it's a good town," he said. "I feel like I can maybe help, just to see what I can help do for Broadway."

Reach Staff Writer Zachary Horner at 919-718-1217 and on Twitter at @Zachary_Horner.

___

(c)2017 The Sanford Herald (Sanford, N.C.)

Visit The Sanford Herald (Sanford, N.C.) at www.sanfordherald.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.