A pair of lifelong Southside residents have joined the crowded race for the Ward 1 city council seat.
Nedra D. Lowery and Anthony Sanders qualified for the race this week, joining six other candidates — Trent Bush, Patrick Holmes, Tommy Jackson, Carolyn Green Sherrod, Ethel Taylor Steward and Liz Terry — for the Sept. 24 special election. The winner of the race will fill the unexpired term of Councilman Gene Taylor, who died Aug. 5.
Lowery, 35, is director of training and marketing at McDonald’s. The mother of two said she feels she brings a new mindset to the position.
“What I would like to bring, not only to Ward 1, but to the city, is a new direction,” Lowery said. “It’s a new mindset. It’s time to revive our city. I’ve lived all my life in Ward 1. My children live here and I want my grandchildren to live here, too.”
Lowery said her key areas of focus as a council member will be bringing more retail businesses to the city, combating crime and supporting education.
“Those three things are my main areas of focus because I believe all three are necessary for us to change the direction of the city,” she said.
Sanders, 50, is a public works employee for the city.
He said he hopes to continue the work of Taylor, his former opponent in previous council races.
“I actually ran against Gene Taylor a couple of times,” Sanders said. “Even so, I always respected what he did for Ward 1, and I’d like to come behind him and continue that.”
Sanders said crime is the biggest issue facing Ward 1 voters.
“In Ward 1, we have to do something about the violence,” he said. “There’s a lot of crime in Ward 1 and trying to cut down on that is very important. It’s not just Ward 1, either. Crime is a problem all over the city.”
If elected, Sanders said he’d like to start holding regular community meetings and make sure parks are open and available to kids.
“Kids have to have somewhere to go,” the father of eight said. “They need to have places to go where they can play and enjoy themselves and be safe.”
Qualifying for the race continues until 5 p.m. on Sept. 4 at the city registrar’s office at City Hall.
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
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