Walhalla candidates appeal for support

Four Walhalla men highlighted their city council candidacies during a well-attended meeting last night at the Depot.  Lamar Bailes, Robbie Burrell, Dennis Owens, and Josh Roberts each have their hopes set on one of the three, four-year council seats available during the November 7 municipal election.  They appealed for votes last night from those attending a regular meeting of the civic group Partners for Progress.  The night’s first speaker, incumbent candidate Bailes, praised Partners for the many involvements the group has had in helping make the city better over the last approximate 15 years.  A long-time Walhalla public servant, Bailes predicted the city can expect great things during the next four years–including the construction of a new water plant and an uptick in housing starts inside city limits.  Candidate Robbie Burrell says he can’t imagine a better place than Walhalla and said he’s interested in helping give the city’s young people reasons to want to make Walhalla their home as adults.  Burrell also said he has some ideas for the city to save some money by cutting individual department expense but, for last night, he deliberately withheld details on how to do that.  Candidate Dennis Owens said he thinks the mayor and council have done a fantastic job, and he’d like to be part of that.  Specific improvements that Owens has in mind include traffic lights at N. Broad and Catherine streets and increased social opportunities such as a movie night on the green.  Candidate Josh Roberts said he’s now a proponent of re-cycling and promised he will become a regular user of the re-cycling center on Cedar Street.  Roberts also said he believes the power outages experienced by Walhalla during Tropical Storm Irma cry out for a project to bury electric power lines that drape over trees.