Moving on to the next Candidate for Alderman Ward 1 – here are responses to our questions from Darrell Grooms. He is running against Nic Cover for the 2 year Alderman Ward 1 seat.

How long have you lived in Greenwood?

My wife and I bought a fixer-upper in 1994. We spent several months remodeling the house and moved in, in 1995.

Are you married? Do you have children, grandchildren, where do they attend school?

I have been married to my wife, Marsha, for 17 years. We have three children and we home school.

What religious and civic organizations do you belong to?

I am a member of Miracle Apostolic Church.

What charities, causes or civic organizations do you support with finances or service?

We support our church, Miracle Apostolic Church as well as Tupelo Children’s Mansion, the United Way, the Salvation Army and Greenwood Families Helping Families.

Who is your current employer? How long have you worked for them?

I have worked for Quality Wood Products for approximately 20 years and have also been self-employed for the past four years.

List all the companies or organizations you have been employed by for the past 10 years.

In addition to Quality Wood Products and my company, The Cabinet Guy, I have also worked for Ford Motor Company in the past 10 years.

What companies or businesses do you own or hold a greater than 20% stake in?

I own The Cabinet Guy, a custom wood working company.

On what corporate boards have you served?

I am a Board Member at Miracle Apostolic Church.

What is your educational background?

I graduated from High School in Liberty, MO and attended one year of college at Gateway College in St. Louis, MO.

What current or past political organizations do or have you belong(ed) to?

I have served on the Greenwood Planning and Zoning Board for two years.

Are you associated with any of the current or past Aldermen or Mayors of Greenwood?

I know all of the current Aldermen as well as a few former Aldermen and Mayor DeCourcy on a professional level, through my involvement with the Greenwood Planning and Zoning Board.

What is your management style?

I lead by example, promoting teamwork, open communication and consideration of new ideas.

Do you practice forgiveness in your every day life? How?

Forgiveness is an essential part of my Christian life and I strive to practice forgiveness daily, realizing that I’m not perfect and I must be willing to forgive if I expect others to forgive me.

How do you deal with personality conflicts or with conflict in general?

Proverbs 15:1 “A soft answer turneth away wrath…” I believe most conflict can be easily resolved with kindness. The old saying “you can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar” is true.

What are your professional qualifications for the office you seek?

I own and operate my own business. I understand the necessity of staying on-budget, of planning for unexpected expenses, of generating new business, of negotiating with suppliers in order to get the best deal possible without sacrificing quality. Also I have served on Greenwood’s Planning and Zoning Board for two years and am familiar with several of the issues our city is facing right now. Finally, I am passionate about our city and want to see Greenwood thrive again.

What is your agenda/platform?

First I want to talk to my constituents and see what they want for Greenwood. Also we must overcome the political impasse that has hindered Greenwood’s growth and added to our problems. Elected officials must learn to work with each other for the good of Greenwood instead of stubbornly clinging to personal agenda’s and holding grudges. The next BOA and Mayor need to work together to create a balanced budget. Also our infrastructure must be repaired and we need to develop a strong Greenwood Economic Development Committee.

What do you think the biggest challenge Greenwood faces is?

How to balance a budget that maintains necessary services, provides for improvements and plans for emergencies while facing a tough economy.

What do you think our city’s focus should be for the next two years?

For the next two years the Board of Aldermen and the Mayor need to focus on creating a balanced budget, repairing our infrastructure and most importantly governing as a cohesive unit.

What are your top three priorities, goals to see accomplished if you are elected to office?

My top three priorities are analyzing the city’s expenses and incomes in order to create a balanced budget, working to develop a strong Greenwood Economic Development Council that will bring new business into Greenwood, and putting a plan in motion to repair all of our cities streets and other infrastructure.

Of those three priorities – what is your #1 priority for 2010?

The top priority for 2010 has to be creating a workable balanced budget – one that makes the most of our income and eliminates any unnecessary expenses.

Like the National Economy, our City economy has faltered; what plans do you have to make Greenwood thrive again?

For Greenwood to thrive again we need to generate more revenue, the best way to do that is to bring new business into town. With that in mind, I believe that a strong Greenwood Economic Development Council would benefit our community. I would work with them to strengthen existing Greenwood businesses and draft plans to draw new business into town. I would like to look at the possibility of having a light industrial park in Greenwood and am open to any other suggestions.

What tough budget decisions do you feel need to be made in order to keep Greenwood running on a positive budget with the income the city currently has (not counting the jury award of 11.9 million)?

I don’t have enough information to accurately answer this question at this time. After I am elected I will make it a priority to evaluate all spending and the programs Greenwood is currently involved in.

What plans do you have to bring new business into Greenwood?

We need to make Greenwood attractive to new businesses. The economy is still down and many businesses are still struggling, but new businesses are being opened up. We need to evaluate our policies and make sure our community is business-friendly so that as entrepreneurs are looking for opportunities to open businesses they will consider Greenwood as a viable location. If we make these changes now we will be able to see even more growth in Greenwood as the local and national economy recovers.

What types of businesses would you like to see in Greenwood?

Greenwood is a prime location for family owned businesses. I would like to build on what we already have here and see another restaurant, a small hardware store, an ice cream shop, a Barber Shop – more of these types of businesses. There are prime locations along 150 Hwy for establishments like these. Also I think we should consider the possibilities of a light industrial park in Greenwood. That would be a great way to bring employment into town for our citizens.

What plans do you have to make our city safer?

I believe Greenwood is a very safe place and our police department does a great job. The city should have a protocol established for emergencies, if we do not I would like to see that established and shared with the residents of Greenwood.

What resolution would you like to see to the issue of the Quarry and it’s traffic and the use of our city streets?

We need to have a clear understanding of what the most recent court rulings mean for the city. The Quarry needs a reasonable route to 150 Hwy and our city streets, including 2^nd Avenue and Allendale Lake Road are not built to handle the traffic. I am willing to discuss this issue with any of my constituents.

What plans do you have to address the storm water issues our city is still facing or do you feel that the current plans are addressing those issues?

Unfortunately this is a problem that we inherited from developers that did not do a more thorough job, and a city that tried to patch the problem.  The problem we face now is money to correctly fix the problems. This is part of Greenwood’s infrastructure that desperately needs to be repaired. When elected I would review the current plans both for repair and for funding of that repair and would make any recommendations for changes I thought were necessary after my review.

What do you propose to do with the parking issue or parking ordinance here in Greenwood?

We need to revisit this issue and discuss it with those residents and businesses that would be affected. We can come up with a workable solution that takes everyone’s needs and preferences into consideration.

What other improvements would you like to see in our community?

Greenwood is a great place to live, but it is in desperate need of a face-lift. We need to focus on our infrastructure – streets, curbs, side walks, storm drains – when they are repaired they need to be structurally sound and will improve the appearance of our city.

Now that the appeals process is done and the city has been awarded the $11.9 million, what would you like to do with that money?

I am a Fiscal Conservative; I definitely don’t want to go on a spending spree with this money. We first need to make sure that all our bills our paid. Then we need to have an emergency fund established for the city. After those two things are accomplished the balance of the money should be used to repair our streets and other infrastructure.

What is your opinion of the current political situation in Greenwood?

Greenwood’s current political situation is deplorable. We’ve had a vacant seat on the BOA since June, we have vacancies on the Planning & Zoning Board, we have seen very little progress on any issue since the last election – our current BOA and Mayor have been unable to work together to accomplish anything and that has to change.

What do you propose to improve the atmosphere at City Hall or how are you going to bring Greenwood together politically?

Treat people with respect. Work together with fellow Alderman and the Mayor to come up with a compromise on issues that we don’t agree on. Try to find common ground, try to understand the other person’s point of view and keep discussions civil and professional. By treating each other with respect, even when we disagree with each other, and keeping the discussion about the issues at hand instead of turning disagreements into personal attacks I believe that we can see the atmosphere at City Hall make a drastic improvement.

From the editor: In an effort to be fully transparent we would like to note that Darrell Grooms and Jennifer Warren, a member of our staff, are in-laws.

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