Off to the Races: Two Candidates, One City Council Seat.

CHERRYVILLE, NC (WNN) - With election day rapidly approaching the two City Council candidates rush through their final laps of campaigning. The winner remains to be seen as the race nears the home stretch.

Election Day is on Tuesday, November 7, 2023. Malcolm Parker is the incumbent council member for the fourth ward. He is running for re-election against Janice Hovis, who held various city positions over the span of 30 years, including city manager. 

Due to their levels of experience, both candidates bring different qualifications to the table. One thing they have in common is their love for Cherryville and their desire to see the city succeed. 

In a statement, Parker expressed that he believes the city is going in a positive direction. He declined to participate in an interview. 

"I'm happy with the way Cherryville is going, and I look forward to the future." said Parker. 

In an interview, Hovis spoke on several topics of concern for Cherryville citizens. Should she be elected, Hovis wants to improve Cherryville's existing infrastructure and focus on transparency between the city and the citizens. 

When asked why she chose to run, Hovis said she wanted voters to have a choice in candidates.

"I had many friends come to me and ask me. They knew my past and my experience, and they wanted a choice;This was a good time for me to run for this office because I am living alone and I have a lot of time to give." said Hovis. 

Another inspiration behind her campaign is her late husband, Ronald Hovis, who once held office as a City Council member.

Although this is her first time running for election, she has held several nominated positions. While serving as the city manager, Hovis learned how to address citizens' concerns, specifically regarding high utility prices. 

She explained that Cherryville originally bought its power wholesale from Duke Energy, however, in the 1970's Duke experienced difficulties providing its wholesale customers with energy. Because of this, Cherryville entered into a Power Purchase Agreement with other wholesale municipalities.

The PPA involved financing the Catawba Nuclear Power Plant in South Carolina, resulting in higher electric prices. Hovis said the PPA gave Cherryville the opportunity to resell their portion of the energy generated from the power plant, impacting citizens' utility prices. 

"I want to work very closely with the power agencies to make sure that they are doing everything they can to resell any of the power that we may have available out of our nuclear station, so that we continue to level our resale rates with other utilities around us." said Hovis. 

Hovis takes a strong stance regarding Cherryville's infrastructure. She wants to aid the city in improving the roads and other existing infrastructural issues. 

"I've had a lot of people come to me during my campaigning and complaining about the condition of our roads. That's probably the first thing that I would like to see improved." said Hovis. 

She described the impending growth as the "Charlotte Sprawl" As people move away from the big city, smaller cities and towns are becoming overwhelmed by the rapid growth. 

Hovis wants to prepare Cherryville for the expanding population by ensuring the city is capable of supporting more residents. If elected, she plans to review the budget to make certain there is enough revenue to support maintenance programs.

"I would support whatever it takes to have a strong infrastructure." said Hovis.

In other efforts to predict growth, the existing City Council, as well as the Cherryville Main Street Program, have been working to expand the city's downtown area. Hovis believes that a thriving downtown is indicative of a flourishing community, and supports efforts of revitalization.

"It's necessary for our growth in population that people do not have to drive out of town to go to a restaurant and to go do whatever they would like to do. I think it brings people closer together when you have a thriving downtown." said Hovis. 

Although downtown offers retail jobs, there are fewer chances of employment for citizens who work in commercial or industrial fields. Hovis wants to work with Donny Hicks, the Gaston County director for economic development, to bring more jobs to Cherryville. 

"Mr. Donny Hicks has been doing a tremendous job bringing jobs to the county. And I think if we work closer with Mr. Hicks and he will help us bring potential companies to look at our area." said Hovis. 

Regarding future potential for industrial job opportunities, the proposed Piedmont Lithium mine could create up to 400 positions directly related to the project, and 200 jobs during the construction process. On October 12, 2023, Piedmont Lithium hosted an open house meeting that delved into several aspects of the project, economic development included. 

The proposed mine has been a topic of discussion in Cherryville for years and many citizens still have questions about the project; Hovis included. She said she has reached out to Emily Winter, the community coordinator for Piedmont Lithium, to set up an information session so she can gain all the necessary knowledge on the topic. 

Should she be elected, Hovis intends to work closely with other government agencies to ensure the proposed mine follows all the necessary guidelines. Piedmont Lithium has been working closely with the existing City Council to support Cherryville. 

The company pledged $500,000 a year, over a 20 year timeframe, towards Cherryville's recreation department. The funding from this grant will employ a full time recreational director. 

Hovis is passionate about Cherryville's recreation, and believes the appointment of a director will benefit the city tremendously. She wants to see the existing recreational programs become more inclusive for all people. 

"Baseball is the big thing. And that's great. But there's just kind of a there for certain children that's not able to participate in certain sports. And I think to do that, there's going to have to be more organization." said Hovis. 

When mentioning baseball, she alluded to several recreation projects that are currently underway, such as the new Senior Little League field and the baseball themed splash pad, which Piedmont Lithium funded.

Although he did not participate in the interview, Councilman Parker’s platform indicates that he wants to see similar improvements to Cherryville.

In a Facebook post, one of his supporters, Michael Jones, spoke highly of the candidate.

"Since Malcolm has been on the City Council, we have taken our city image back to a respectable image of a city with a bright future." said Jones in the post. 

According to his supporters, Parker played an instrumental role in planning for the splash pad, coordinating the new position of recreational director and many other city projects. 

Both candidates draw inspiration from their experience and the concerns of the citizens. They are passionate about ensuring that all Cherryville residents love where they live and are committed to the hard work needed to achieve this.

The end is in sight for campaign season and the race is now in the hands of the voters. Before long, the results will be in and a new era of local politics will begin.  

• Interested in watching the full interview with Janice Hovis? Watch our video on Youtube!

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