Two enter race for Grovetown council

Two Grovetown men will run for the city council seat vacated by George James, who resigned Sept. 29 to run for the District 4 County Commission seat.

Tony Arnold and Mike Frazier will face off Nov. 4 to fill the 26 remaining months of James' term.

Arnold, 60, recently retired from Atlanta Gas Light Co., which introduced him to Grovetown before moving there in 1988.

"The main reason I am running for office is to continue serving the public in this area, in particular the residents of the city of Grovetown and the future generations," Arnold said. "I want to do something to do my part to better the neighborhood and the town."

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Though Arnold considers Grovetown's public safety department and education systems top-notch, he said he hopes to keep them ahead of the game, if elected, by making sure they have equipment and money to do so.

Frazier, 35, is vice president of Job Shop and Augusta Staffing, and said he would like to use his business background to attract more businesses to Grovetown for more employment opportunities and more shopping and dining choices for residents.

"I'd love to see there be more selection here in the town to help keep Grovetown's dollars in Grovetown," Frazier said. "They don't have to drive to Evans, to Martinez, to west Augusta or to the Target area. They can stay and keep that money here."

With less than a month until the election, the two candidates are attacking campaigning differently.

"I plan on going door to door just doing the regular old-fashioned type of campaigning," said Arnold, who has spent nearly a decade on the city's Planning and Zoning Board, where he is chairman.

If elected, Frazier said he wants to work for city residents to manage Grovetown as they would want and using technology to seek input. He set up an e-mail address (votefrazier@bellsouth.net) for comments or questions, and a Web site (www.mikefrazier.net) will be completed soon with forums for questions, discussions and community calendars.

Candidates

Name: Tony Arnold

Age: 60

Residence: 311 Second Ave., Grovetown

Occupation: Retired

Political Experience: None

Community Involvement: Current chairman and member of the Grovetown Planning and Zoning Board, Jerry Lewis Telethon supporter, volunteers with Epsilon Sigma Alpha

Family: Married, four children

Name: Mike Frazier

Age: 35

Residence: 4900 Selkirk Way, Grovetown

Occupation: Vice president of Job Shop and Augusta Staffing

Political Experience: None

Community Involvement: member of Augusta Metro Chamber of Commerce

Family: Married, two children