Go with the known for Montgomery mayor votes

I have a few thoughts regarding the coming city elections.

First, everyone eligible must do their civic duty and go out and vote, regardless of where they live in Montgomery, how "warm" it may be, or anything said about the current administration.

Everyone "promises" to do something about something and yet knows nothing about what is needed or goes on behind the scenes. Montgomery has grown exponentially in the last 20 years and as my mother said decades ago, if they keep going east, they will eventually end up in Tuskegee!

I have lived here all of my 69 years and have seen mayors, councilmen and councilwomen come and go. Many were decent but heavy-handed in the way they rebuilt the city.

I was a Chamber of Commerce Hostess/Chamberette when I was in my 20s and 30s when Emory Folmar was mayor. I could tell you a few stories about their administration but that would just be rude. Let's just say that in spite of a lot of things — right or wrong — he got the job done. Bobby Bright's short-lived administration opened the door for his big jump to Congress, only to come back to the "Gump" with a fat government pension. He was well-liked and could have had a 2^nd term. Finally, the recent mayor, Todd Strange, worked really hard with those of us who rode the transit system (MATS), changed a lot of things in the way the city was laid out and how things ran... but he got the job done with some opposition. In order to run anything effectively, you have to know how things work, especially if it involves your constituents.

For this next election, there are three men who have "stepped up" to the plate to offer their services, the current Mayor Steven Reed, and two others — one black and one white — who, as far as I can see from looking at their Facebook pages and videos, have never run for public office nor served in this type of environment before.

One talks about the crime rate here being exorbitant and out of hand. Here are a few statistics for the State per al.com. The cities in Alabama with the highest crime rates per capita are:

• Fairfield

• Anniston

• Lanett

• Birmingham

• Tarrant

According to al.com, the cities in Alabama with the most violent crimes known to law enforcement are Huntsville, Mobile, and Montgomery.

So, Montgomery ranks third in the "most violent crimes" and yet as of the 2020 Census statistics, we are a city of more than 200K people, the second largest in the state behind Huntsville. We will never be "crime free". Too many people are fighting for the same piece of pie. The housing rates for apartments and homes are through the roof with few signs of easing. We need the cooperation of the community — schools, churches, parents and businesses — to all do their part in quelling the rise in youth and adult violence, working for jobs and expanded educational opportunities, to make Montgomery a better and more productive place to live. Just saying "You will do more to fight crime" is not solving the problem. It's appealing to a "single issue" motive for votes.

The second individual has no record that I can find that tells me anything about his initiatives or programs that he would like to start, or any history of public service. I rest my case.

As for the current titleholder, much has been said about what he hasn't done. Much has been said about what he may or may not have said. I make it a point never to listen to hearsay and the "street committee". They get a lot of credit for being wrong 95% of the time. Mayor Steven Reed has successfully run this city without scandal, without deference to one race or another or shown preference to one side or another. He has been even-handed across the board.

His Record in brief: He has expanded and upgraded the city transit system with new buses; added more maintenance staff to cut this place, pull trash, and keep the signs and lights working, which is a humongous task in itself, and gotten many businesses on the West side of town to work on beautification of their properties. (According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 156.2 square miles or 405 km 2, of which 155.4 square miles (402 km 2) is land and 0.8 square miles (2.1 km 2) (0.52%) is water.) He oversaw the completion of the latest major Montgomery attraction, which brought 10K people over the weekend, to splash and play near Maxwell; saw to the installation of the Rosa Parks statue in downtown Montgomery and has held several tours for businesses interested in opening here.

I know I have said a lot and could say even more but you may not print all of this so I will stop with this thought: I always go with the known, not the unknown.

The Rev. Rose H. McCall of Kingdom Woman Ministries is a native of Montgomery, and a graduate of Huntingdon College with a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Arts. Ordained into the Ministry in May of 2012.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Go with the known for Montgomery mayor votes