Summerville mayoral candidates discuss plans for change

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - In a little over a week, voters in Summerville will head to the polls to elect a new mayor because current Mayor Wiley Johnson is not running for another term.

Voters will have four candidates on the ballot, who have a ride range of experience.

The candidates are Bill Hearn, Brandon King, Fleming Moore and Ricky Waring.

All four candidates say their main goal is to get the Mayor, town council and the residents of Summerville on the same page.

Recently, taxes have been a major part of the discussions around campaigns.

Newcomer Brandon King says much of his campaign is centered around taxes.

“I’m fighting in this campaign to ease the tax burden as much as possible for the common man upset about paying more in taxes,” he said. "There are countless creative ways to fund the local government without having to extort residents under the fear of losing their property if they don’t pay new increased rates.”

Dorchester County Councilman Bill Hearn says that if elected, there are to main issues he’d like to get handled as soon as possible.

“Roads and traffic, number one," Hearn said. "That’s one issue. The second issue would be our flooding. Our stormwater issues. And those do need to be tackled immediately. And you know, certainly not looking to raise taxes for the sake of raising taxes. There are ways to leverage money that we can do these projects with.”

Another newcomer to the political scene is Fleming Moore. Moore says he wants Summerville to be a hub for arts and culture and change how taxes are spent.

“I want to see a strategic investment of hospitality and accommodation taxes to shore up our arts and hospitality community," Moore said. "I think one way would be to get tough on developers. To assure that developers pay for the infrastructure or agree to before they break ground.”

Former Fire Chief Ricky Waring’s campaign priorities are traffic, essential services, and controlled growth.

Election Day is Nov. 5.

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