A crowded cafeteria full of voters wishing to get better acquainted with local candidates, attended the Meet the Candidate Night event held at Forney High School on April 25. It was a chance to find out where the mayoral candidates stand on issues that are important to Forney residents. Newcomer John Carr is challenging Incumbent Mayor Darren Rozell in the upcoming election.
Each candidate was given time to make a brief introductory speech before the questions began. The format called for each candidate to answer three questions read to them by the moderator, Kaufman County Judge Bruce Wood.
Mayor's Race
The race for Mayor of Forney pits incumbent Darren Rozell against challenger John Carr. Rozell was appointed to City Council in 2005 and was then elected to the Council in 2006. He ran for mayor in 2009 and again in 2011 and was elected both times. Rozell was raised in Forney and is a graduate of Forney High School's class of 1986 and is a 1991 Baylor University graduate. He is a member of the Lions Club, the Kaufman County Leadership Council, the Forney Chamber of Commerce, the Forney Arts Council, and the Forney Downtown Business Association. He is self-employed locally and has been married to Whitney Rozell since 1993.
John Carr is a professional engineer who has 15 years experience as a business owner. He told the audience that he has 30 years of municipal infrastructure design, operations, and construction experience. He graduated with a degree in Chemistry in 1984 and later went back to school to gain a degree in Chemical Engineering. He is married to Audra Carr and has three daughters.
Carr had the opportunity to answer three questions in a row, with a one minute time allotment for each question. The first question was, “What specific experiences are in your background that makes you a good candidate?” Carr said that he has been through every kind of city infrastructure that can be built or designed. He also said, “I understand the pressures that can corrupt people...what those are and how to get around them.”
His second question was, “Why do you feel that you are a better candidate than your opponent?” He answered, “I understand what kind of qualified people need to be in the city versus unqualified people.” He feels that Forney is growing at an enormous rate and needs a City Engineer. He blamed the lack of an engineer on the reason Forney had to pay Pate Transportation $2 million to settle a claim. Rozell later clarified that $1.2 million of that was actually money that the City owed Pate for services rendered.
Carr's third question was, “What motivated you to get into politics and what would you like your legacy to be?” He told the audience that he had a conversation with the recently deceased D.A. Mike McLelland back in September about getting into government politics. He claimed that McLelland told him to run and also said that McLelland joked with him the night before he died telling him that the only black and white in Forney are the stripes down the highway. Invoking the name and memory of a man recently murdered seemed to shock some in the audience.
Next up was Mayor Darren Rozell, who was given the same three questions as Mr. Carr. As to his experience and qualifications he said, “Experience does matter...I have four years, he has none.” Rozell noted how well the City has come through the recession and said the City has discussed hiring an engineer, but that doing so during a recession was not possible.
Mayor Rozell said that with his four years of experience and his leadership with the Council, he is the best person to be leading the City right now. He noted that the City never had to fire anyone during the recession and that City employees only went one year without a raise.
Rozell said that he got into politics as a way to serve the community where he grew up. He spoke about the many service projects he has been involved in, including leading the Lions Club Angel Tree program for 7 to 8 years. He said, “My involvement in politics has really come out of service and caring about this community. I don't consider myself a politician.”
Audience Questions for John Carr
Q: Should the City consider creating a compost program to go along with the recycling program?
Carr thinks it is a "great idea."
Q: The radio system used for fire and police is less than adequate...are there any plans to fix this problem?
Carr said that it should be much higher on the list of things to be done.
Audience Questions for Mayor Darren Rozell
Q: Are there any plans to build a second fire station and how fast do you see this happening?
Rozell said there are plans for a second fire station and that the land has already been donated by the developer that owns the land. The station will be near FM 548 and Reeder. The Council already approved funding for architectural drawings of the building, but funding the new fire station and the minimum 12 firefighters that will need to be hired will likely take a bond measure.
Q: Why did the City Council sell a house for less than the original purchase amount?
Rozell said the City Council approved the sale but the Forney Economic Development Board actually owned the property and made the sale. The EDC did so to incentivize development in the downtown area and specifically the run down property that was purchased.
Have questions for the candidates? Here is each candidates contact information:
John Carr: johncarrformayor@gmail.com Facebook page here.
Darren Rozell: darren@cityofforney.org Cell: 214-668-0554 Facebook page here.