Albany Ward 2 candidates meet with constituents at Historic Rawson Circle

ALBANY – Albany City Commission candidates for Ward II spent the evening mingling and answering questions of the ward’s constituents last week..

Muarlean Edwards, Henry Mathis and Willie Weaver met with Historic Rawson Circle and Palmyra Heights residents at the Garden Center at Historic Rawson Circle. Julie Miller with the Rawson Circle Garden District said the event wasn’t a debate but an opportunity for the candidates to meet residents one-on-one and to address constituent concerns. About 20 residents filled the Garden Center to hear from candidates. 

The candidates each gave four-minute introductions in which they touched on their campaign priorities. For Weaver, those were lowering utility costs, engaging young adults, historic preservation and downtown development. 

Edwards also addressed utility costs as well as the years of experience she has working to enhance the lives of Albanians – something she said she will continue to do as commissioner. 

“I’ll go outside the box, do the things that you ask,” she said to constituents. “If you ever call me about a problem, and I don’t have the answer, I’ll find the answer.” 

Mathis talked about opposing the building of a fire station at Tift Park, paving alleys and roads in his ward, and fully staffing the Albany Police Department. He said Albany is 97 officers short of a fully staffed department. 

“A fully staffed police department will provide greater deterrents against crime, adequate neighborhood patrol, faster response time and safe community code enforcement,” he said. 

After introduction speeches, the three candidates broke off into clustered conversations where attendees didn’t hold back sharing their main concerns. 

Several constituents talked with Weaver about the need for police officers assigned to specific neighborhoods. 

“I’m all about community-oriented policing,” Weaver said. “You’ve got to have feet on the ground.” 

He also spoke in favor of using more technology in the Police Department, such as Flock Safety Cameras to track crime. Weaver also said he’d like to see more qualified, and homegrown, candidates in Albany’s police academy – people who grew up in Albany and truly care about the community. 

As residents fired off concerns, Weaver jotted them down in a binder. 

Edwards had conversations about utility costs. Residents came to her with concerns about customer service among city departments, like Albany Utilities. 

She took down the name and number of each constituent she spoke to and pledged to always be accessible, hosting “office hours” and making sure to be only a phone call away. 

“I’m as open as an open door,” Edwards said. “I just want to do what the majority wants, what’s good for the whole.” 

Mathis spoke passionately with Rawson Circle and Palmyra Heights attendees. He spoke about his plans to request a forensic audit of city spending. He expressed concern for high salaries in departments where he feels not enough is going on, citing downtown development as a No. 1 concern. 

“When prospects come into the city, there’s several things they look at … city safety, what’s the school system like, are there good churches … culture and activity … and what’s the recreation for the youth,” Mathis said. 

Mathis said as a commissioner he wants to bring the city and county governments together more often. He said all of these sectors impact economic development, and they all need to work together. 

Neighborhood residents left the mingle session with campaign pamphlets, flyers and phone numbers. 

“We wanted to make sure these neighborhoods had an opportunity to hear from candidates,” Miller said. “A lot of us don’t know them because they don’t live in our neighborhoods; so this was an opportunity. We had a great turnout for tonight.”