Five of the six candidates for the Orange City Council election talked about their plans to serve the citizens and get more community involvement. More than 100 people attended a candidate forum Thursday at the Lamar State College-Orange gym. The forum was sponsored by LSC-O and the group Citizens for an Improved Orange.
The incumbent for the single-member District 3 seat, Essie Bellfield, was the only candidate who did not attend. She is being challenged by businessman Michael Smith and nurse-teacher Terrie Salter. Only registered voters who live in the district are allowed to vote for the seat.
In the At-Large Position 6 seat, incumbent Larry Spears Jr attended along with Mary Ekene and former police officer Veronica Woodle. All registered voters in the city may vote for the at-large position.
David Derosier served as the moderator and retired County Judge Carl Thibodeaux was the timer. LSC-O students submitted questions to be asked. Derosier said students had about 400 questions. Citizens also submitted questions before the forum began. Each candidate answered separate questions for an hour and a half.
Ekene in the biography she submitted said she is originally from Sugarland and has lived in Orange for the past 10 years. She has two daughters and “a great passion and joy for doing right by people.”
During questions, she said crime is the biggest problem facing Orange. She would like to have more police presence to help citizens and “make sure when we’re in our homes we feel safe.” In addition, she would support a sports complex with a variety of softball, baseball and soccer fields. She also would like to see more activities for children to do things like dancing, singing and writing.
Spears is 36 years old. His wife is Trisha and they have three children. He is a 1998 graduate of West Orange-Stark High and a 2001 graduate of Lamar Institute of technology. He has worked at DuPont in Orange for 15 years. He is currently mayor pro tem on the council and is a director on the City of Orange Economic Development Corporation. He is also a member of the Southeast Texas Regional Planning Commission and vice chair of the West Orange-Stark Alumni Foundation.
During questions, Spears said he would use established local groups to help bring the community and law enforcement officers together. He said groups like Make It Happen and Brothers Beating Odds are working with kids. One group brought police and firefighters to the apartments at 111 Pine Avenue on a recent Saturday afternoon to meet kids and everyone had a good time. “If we’re going to live here, we need to know each other,” he said.
Woodle is a native of Southern California and moved to Orange to work as a police officer. “If observed first hand what the community needs and wants. I decided to take my experience as a public servant to public office in an attempt to merge the gap of communications between City Hall and the residents that are ultimately affected by the decisions made at City Hall,” she wrote.
During questions, she said she would like to see a Police Athletic League to support kids in sports and involve police with youth. She also thinks transportation for the elderly and low-income citizens needs to be improved. The current system with county buses sometimes means someone with a doctor’s appointment will take up a whole day because of the schedules.
Bellfield in her submitted biography said “politics have been my passion for most of my life.” She was the first woman and first black to be elected mayor in Orange. She marched with Dr. martin Luther King Jr. during the March in Washington. She said her civil rights work has been honored many times. In January, she received the Legend Award at the local MLK Gala. She is a member of Salem United Methodist Church.
She was absent and did not answer questions.
Salter is a native of Orange and is “a widow, mother, caregiver, teacher, professional, leader and most of all an advocate for many,” she wrote in her biography. She has been a nurse for more than 22 years and is currently working through the University of Texas at Arlington to become a family nurse practitioner. She has degrees in nursing and other studies. “I pledge to always work hand in hand with other city council members from progress, and that I will always have an open door to listen to the residents of Orange,” she wrote.
In an answer to a question, she said she would support getting Uber or a local taxi service to help with transportation. She said Uber is a business and Orange needs to get more business. In addition, the current public transportation is not always available when people need it. She endorses setting up a city recycling program. She said she will do research and look for more grants to help the city. “I am proud to live here. I feel I want to be part of the change that needs to take place,” she said.
Smith in his biography said he is 42 and has lived in Orange for more than 10 years. His wife is Anna and they have four sons. He is a 1993 graduate of Stephen F. Austin High School and served in the Army National Guard from 1991-97. He eared the General Motors Mark of Excellence for nine consecutive years. When he was manager of Sholars Pharmacy, he started a program to provide free antibiotics to the community. Last year, the city council appointed him to the Planning and Zoning Commission. The family attends Community Church. He said he wants to focus on business growth and development, jobs and city infrastructure.
He said he wants to get more young people involved in the city and mentor students to show them how the city works. People have a lot of good ideas but sometimes the ideas never get heard, he said. In addition, he wants to get more people to move to Orange. Citizens should be involved in council decisions like moving city hall, he said. The city still has a responsibility to maintain the historic Green Avenue building and find an appropriate use for it, he said.
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