Decatur Commissioner Fred Boykin just sent in this announcement…

I am pleased to announce my intention to seek another term on the Decatur City Commission. It has been an honor and a privilege to represent this community since I was first elected in 2001. Decatur has certainly changed since then. We have a vibrant Square, downtown residential, a bustling Oakhurst, and a crackerjack school system – just to name a few of our community’s many accomplishments. We’ve updated many of our city buildings  – City Hall, Fire Stations 1 & 2, the Recreation Center and Glenlake Park. We’ve created new Boards to help guide our community – the Active Living Board, Environmental Sustainability Board, and soon to come – the Lifelong Communities Board. The list goes on.

However, there is still much to do – infrastructure enhancements like the Church Street redesign, N. McDonough and the railroad crossing improvements, plus Public Works, the Beacon Hill Complex and the Calloway Building are all in the design phase or under construction. We have annexation and taxation issues plus new zoning guidelines to work out. An update of our tree ordinance and a number of our other codes is needed. The list goes on.

I have taken part in these kinds of decisions since I was first elected and I believe I have fairly represented Decatur and tried to do what was in the best interests of our community. I say now what I said in 2009: I do my homework, keep up with the issues, listen to the community and then vote for what I believe best for Decatur. I believe my efforts when combined with the high level of involvement of so many of you have helped Decatur become the community that it is – the community we care so much about.

I ask for your support and your vote this November. My campaign website will be up shortly and I will be out in the community to hear your thoughts. If you would like to contact me before then, feel free to email  or give me a call.

Thank you,

Fred Boykin, Decatur City Commission, District 1
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Sent out by the City of Decatur…

Break out the bunting, book the brass band, register the SuperPAC, and hire the press secretary. The first candidate for the soon-to-be-vacated commission seat currently occupied by The Great Bill Floyd(tm) has announced his intention to run. This just in from Decatur scion Scott Drake:

Although I knew we could not keep Mayor Floyd forever, I was reluctant to accept the idea that he would one day leave his seat on the Commission. Mayor Floyd’s shoes will be difficult to fill, but his approach, personality, actions, and service will provide a valuable footprint to follow for years to come.

After much thought and conversation among family and friends, I have decided that I would like to take this opportunity to serve the Decatur community and run for the District 1 Commission seat. Over the years I have had the pleasure of working closely with most City departments, the City Commission and City staff members. From projects in my professional life, service on many community and non-profit boards and service as President of Decatur Business Association, my interactions working with the City have been ones of professionalism mixed with small town sensibility.

As a City of Decatur business owner, a parent with two daughters in our fine school system, and with deep roots in the community, I feel this is an important opportunity for me to give back and help shape our future. I ask for your support in this time of transition and if given the opportunity to serve on the Commission, I hope to continue building on the foundation which so many in our community have contributed over the years.

Mayor Bill Floyd tells DM that he will run for reelection to the Decatur City Commission this fall, and that this will probably be his last term serving.

Commissioners Jim Baskett and Kecia Cunningham, who are also up for reelection in the fall, have yet to officially reveal their intentions.

Over on the AJC, retired reporter Jim Walls of Atlanta Unfiltered writes of the ongoing difficulties of obtaining political campaign disclosures for various Atlanta metro candidates.

“Last week, I paid $6 to park and pick up disclosures for Atlanta’s mayor and City Council.

The municipal clerk’s office is supposed to open at 8:30 a.m. I sat on the floor outside until someone unlocked the door 20 minutes later. Then I was told that the guy who could burn the files to a CD wasn’t in, so I needed to come back later.”

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