Columbus

Michael Gage: I feel like the people have supported me being a fiscally responsible person and they support the fact that I hit the issues head on even though they are sometimes controversial. I want to continue improving our infrastructure and bringing it up to date and move forward with refurbishing our wastewater treatment plant.

I want to re-establish a relationship with local businesses and I want to try to figure out what their needs are and how to bring in more business with lower fees to help them profit.

Ernie Kan

The first feeling I had was a feeling of gratitude. I would like to thank all that came out to vote on Tuesday. It was nice to see almost 200 citizens in the town of Columbus, concerned and involved enough to care about what is happening. Many of them felt they could trust me to represent them. Our love of the area will keep us working together to protect, and have quality controlled growth of our town.

As I responded at the forum, if the coucil agrees, I would like to begin setting hours at the town hall each month for a council person to meet with the people one on one with hours during the day. Complaints, good news, items that need to be taken care of in the town, that should come through the council should be given to the council, and logged into a book for all of council to review. This gives us the opportunity to hear from the townpeople, and they should be able to feel that we hear them and respect them enough to respond in a timely manner. Questions not on agenda at the meetings should also be brought to council at this time. The more open the council can be, the more informed the town will be, and meetings will be able to run more quickly and stay on agenda topics.

Margaret Metcalf: I want to thank the citizens of Columbus who voted for me. I feel very privileged that Columbus citizens have placed their trust in me for another four years.

I&squo;d like for our council and new mayor to step back, take a deep breath and prioritize as to the importance of the decisions that will have to be made that are and will be facing Columbus.

Eric McIntyre

I am very pleased that the voters of Columbus have selected me to be their mayor. I would like to thank them for their confidence in me. I will work diligently for them and the town of Columbus, along with the town council, to strive to make the best decisions for all.

The most immediate concern is the Foster Creek development. It is the elephant in the room. Although the planning board and town council has made an excellent effort to put in place many ordinances to &dquo;protect&dquo; our town and way of living, there is so much more to do. I am confident with the citizens who hold elected positions that the move forward will be one of due diligence, patience, understanding, and very positive for all.

Landrum

Jan Horton

The City of Landrum is a wonderful place to live and I feel honored to be re-elected to our city council. I feel that it is very important for council members to be financially responsible, keep taxes and fees low while ensuring a safe and quality lifestyle, and to support and promote our businesses. I plan to continue to do everything that I possibly can to address the cares and concerns of our residents and business owners. I would like to thank the citizens of Landrum for allowing me to serve them for four more years.

Billy Inman

I would like to thank the citizens of Landrum for voting for me as well as the other council members. This council works well together and will continue to do so in the future. Also thanks to Chris Armstrong for running for council and I would encourage him to do so again in two years.

We are proceeding with the sidewalk project on North Randolph and hope to be able to secure grants to refurbish the train depot in the near future.

If anyone has any questions or comments about anything concerning the city please feel free to call me at 864-457-3675 at anytime.

Saluda

Fred Baisden

I want to thank all the residents of Saluda who voted. I look forward to assisting our commissioners as we work together to meet the goals of Saluda. I plan to work with our employees to better understand their involvement in the day-to-day operation of city government. Our most immediate goal is to develop an action plan to address the high cost of water for our customers.

Johnnie Kinard

First I want to thank all my supporters for a hard fought campaign. Two votes is about as close as it gets. I am very glad that George had such a resounding victory He will be a real asset to the board. I was disappointed that the election board would not let us post a notice that Laura had withdrawn or tell people that she was not a candidate this really makes no sense. As far as my plans for the next four years I feel that we have a real good board that will work very hard for Saluda. We need to continue to address the water issue and I have several items that need to be addressed in the police department with the help of Jim (Cantrell, chief) Erny (Williams, city administrator). Again many thanks to my supporters.

Tryon

Doug Arbogast

I would like to thank all the people who took time to vote and hope we can inspire more voter participation in future elections by our actions in the upcoming years. I intend to jump in with both feet, while trying to keep at least one out of my mouth at all times and kick off at least several of the initives for re-energizing downtown. For starters I would like to see all vacant store windows lit up and exhibiting local art so window shoppers and passers by might get a glimpse of the culture and talent we have in Tryon.

Alan Peoples

I would like to thank all those who voted for me and I appreciate their confidence in my ability to lead this great Town. It feels good to be serving a fifth term at the helm of this great Town. Please join me and help me find ways to keep our &dquo;acre of diamonds&dquo; viable.

&bsp;My immediate goals for our Town are to continue with the upgrades to the water system, seek businesses to fill our empty storefronts, search for ways to cut expenses without curtailing services, seek other new business ventures, and to work with the two new faces on our council.

Wim Woody

1) I am very pleased that the voters of Tryon placed their trust in me by electing me with the largest number of votes. I will work hard to maintain their trust. The results of the election showed that the citizens are looking for a change in the way our town is run. I look forward to hearing the citizen&squo;s concerns and working with them to resolve the issues that affect our town.

2) My plan is to work with town manager Justin Hembree in becoming more familiar with the issues of immediate concern to our town. I also look forward to working with Austin Chapman and the new make-up of the council in rescinding the town&squo;s annexation ordinance in order to put this divisive issue behind us, so that we can concentrate on those issues which will move us toward a more prosperous future.