Sunday, November 15, 2009
News, Politics, Atlanta

Runoff-o-rama

Voters return to the polls on Dec. 1 to choose an Atlanta City Council president and two council members

By Mark Woolsey

An easy majority of incumbents won re-election to the Atlanta City Council on Nov. 3, but three runoff races—in addition to the mayoral runoff—remain to be decided on Dec. 1.

The race for the City Council presidency, the District 6 council seat and the Post 2 At-Large position were thrown into runoffs when no candidate was able to muster a clear majority of the vote.

Like the majority of Atlanta’s City Council members, the issues that face the city are familiar. The runoff candidates are consistently hammering on two major themes: City Hall efficiency/finances, and public safety.
 
      Here’s a look at the runoff races.
 

Council Presidency: Mitchell vs. Muller

Present council members Ceasar Mitchell and Clair Muller cornered the lion’s share of the vote, roughly 49 percent and 41 percent, respectively.
 

• Mitchell says he’s invigorated and fired up, and will work to continue “delivering a clear message to the citizens and running a positive and issues-based campaign tackling such major issues as public safety and working to reform city government.”

• Muller says that “I am working on more of the same. Getting my voters back out there because turnout is very important. I’m doing more fundraising and trying to get the word out through mailers and e-mail [on] my record and experience and why Atlanta needs me in the No. 2 spot.”

 
     On whether the city even needs a council president, or needs to look at changing the parameters of the job:
   

• Mitchell expresses no such doubts about a continuation of the position. “You look around the country, every governing body has a leader. Whether it's chair or vice mayor, someone is in that role, and it is critical to making sure that the governing body moves forward” on projects and initiatives.

• Muller says it’s time to look at another charter review, as was done in the early 1990s. “I think somebody needs to be running the council,” she says. “I am not sure I’d eliminate the position, but we need to see how it interfaces with the executive branch and how it can be helpful with the checks and balances that were intended.”

 
      On the issues of shoring up City Hall finances and efficiency, and the public safety question:
    

• Mitchell favors a zero-based budgeting system requiring department heads to justify every expense. He favors a back-to-basics approach emphasizing sanitation, transportation and public safety, all fully funded. On the police and fire issue, he wants to take a fresh look at recruiting; he fears we have recruited officers from northern cities who promptly return north when openings occur there. He also favors an incremental step-pay program rewarding rank and file cops for their service and accomplishments.

• Muller says a five-year projection on city finances by the accounting firm Deloitte and Touche has already provided a financial reorganization plan she wants to see adopted. She wants monthly meetings where department heads are asked to outline expenditures compared to the budget. She says there’s no more money to hire officers other than 50 cops coming on board as a result of federal stimulus funding, but the city should find a way to pay officers more. She thinks a better deployment of officers at the precinct level could yield new efficiencies.

Atlanta Council Post 2 At-Large: Farokhi vs. Watson 

Aaron Watson garnered 44 percent of the vote, and Amir Farokhi 40 percent.
 

• Regarding budget and public safety woes, Farokhi favors a broad campaign to eliminate waste, including selling the city jail and collecting fines and fees that have gone uncollected. He says that money can be used to help hire more police officers and improve the city’s infrastructure. He favors dramatically growing the police department, getting more officers out from behind desks onto the streets. He wants competitive salaries and “a police chief who inspires morale in the rank and file.”

• Watson did not return calls for this story, but his Web site says police force strength should be improved through better recruiting and retention. He also favors a fully staffed 911 center, and allocating officers to high-demand zones. His site states taxes need to be controlled “while developing accurate, transparent and responsible budgets.” He says city priorities need to be refocused and assets better managed.

District 6: Wan vs. Coyle

Alex Wan led a crowded field with 32 percent of the vote. Liz Coyle garnered 22 percent.

On City Hall efficiency and public safety issues:
 

• Wan favors putting more people on the council with business analytical skills and experience. He also wants to run city government more as a business, reducing inefficiencies and increasing competitiveness. On public safety, he favors increased personnel, a hard look at compensation and benefits, and better retention of those in the ranks.

• Coyle favors zero-based budgeting. Overall, she says, tax dollars must be managed more efficiently, with the tax burden kept as low as possible. She favors a concerted effort to grow the tax base as the recession ends. She also favors a long-range financial plan and would consider restructuring the city’s pension system. On public safety, she says she’ll work to ensure strong leadership is in place in the police and fire departments. She also favors an audit of the 911 system and a greater focus on community policing. SP