<< Back 9/25/02 Macon candidates hold first post-primary forum By Scott McLeod Fresh from their primary victories, candidates for county offices discussed their views on a wide range of issues during a forum sponsored by the Macon County League of Women Voters. The most striking difference between the GOP and Democratic slate of candidates for the county board seems to revolve around land-use issues. All three Republicans came out against zoning, with two specifically saying they would only support a countywide land-use plan if voters passed it in a referendum. Democrats were not as specific, and one — Bob Simpson — defended the plan put forth by the county’s Vision 2020 committee. J.B Coram is running against incumbent Ricky Allan Bryson for the District 1 commissioner’s seat. “Let’s cut the fluff. We’re talking about zoning or no zoning,” said Coram when asked about a 1989 survey that showed Macon residents want land-use planning. “But in the next 10 years, you can forget it. Those who brought this forward blew it, and if they keep flogging a dead horse they will never get it.” Republican Mickey Duvall is trying for one of the two commissioner seats from District 2. He said the “real issue” is about taking the rights of property owners. “I will put in a resolution requiring that the citizens of Macon County vote in a county-wide referendum before we put zoning in place. Let’s let the people decide,” said Duvall. Norman Roberts, the other Republican running in District 2, said the land-use proposal considered by the county this spring did not have the support of Macon’s citizens. “If the last offer of zoning was brought before the public and it went through, I would say let’s do it. It was not. My guess is they felt it would fail a vote,” said Roberts. He suggested “taking a step back.” Democrat Bob Simpson is running for one of the District 2 seats, and he believes voters have been fed bad information. “The current land-use plan was shelved because of misinformation. Opponents got it beat down and shelved,” he said. Asked to clarify his position after the meeting, Simpson said he would support a referendum on a land-use plan if it did not cost taxpayers anything. Also, he said he would vote for corridor planning or commercial land-use measures. He said he was reluctant to impose guidelines on farms and on residential property. Bryson, the lone incumbent in the race, is being challenged by Coram. Bryson did not specifically address the current land-use proposal. He did, however, say commissioners have several land-use measures on the books, and that those have been developed by building consensus. “I believe we’ve come to a settlement on some of these issues. We have erosion controls, we have watershed protections. We need to listen to both sides,” Bryson said. Jay Dee Shepherd said some type of land-use plan is needed in Macon County. However, he said he did not know what kind. “I think we need community support before we can get into it,” said Shepherd. The issues addressed by the candidates came directly from questions submitted by those attending the luncheon. A couple of the candidates were asked to clarify statements that they had made during the primary campaign. Coram, for instance, had accused the county administration of some accounting mismanagement. He defended his accusation but offered few specifics. “I studied accounting and the county’s books are hopelessly muddled. But until we can get a forensic accounting team I can’t provide an accurate opinion of the problems,” said Coram. He did point to expenditures at the landfill, the selling of used equipment and use of the same consulting firms as areas that he would like to look into. Roberts was asked to explain whether he supported the introduction of Bible studies and Bible reading in public schools. According to the question, that is a tenet of a group called the Concerned Citizens of Macon County to which Roberts belongs. “That is an inaccurate statement,” said Roberts. “The goal is to teach the Bible as history. Period. It’s not religious, not devotional, and no prayer is involved.” Simpson and Duvall were asked how they would raise money without raising taxes. Simpson expressed support for a property transfer tax and for a sales tax on land sold from outside the state of North Carolina. Duvall said the county was adding to its fund balance, which meant it was already taxing too exorbitantly. He also said county property values were too high and that cost savings could be found in the operation of the landfill. Roberts also defended his position on the environment, saying he supports the recently passed amendments to the county’s watershed ordinance. Simpson, in his opening comments, laid out measures that he specifically supports: continuing the school building plan, proceeding with efforts to protect the Needmore tract, strengthening the county’s watershed ordinance by providing more protection to the area between the Georgia line and Lake Emory, and changing the county board’s meeting times to the evening.