Three candidates are seeking two at-large Ringgold City Council seats. Voters will go to the polls on Nov. 8 to decide who will represent them. The Catoosa County News posed six questions to the candidates. They are as follows:

1) The city continues to invest money into Ringgold’s historic downtown district heralding it as a destination for tourism. Many of the store fronts and buildings downtown are occupied by professional offices that are of little interest to tourists and as a result downtown essentially shuts down on the weekends except for a handful of businesses when tourism should be at its height. Sadly, many small businesses that could have some interest to visitors come and go within a few months. Do you have any ideas to provide locations and better opportunities for the survival of tourist friendly businesses in the downtown area to help make Ringgold a more inviting destination?

2) Ringgold is growing residentially like the rest of Catoosa County by the addition of concentrated subdivisions such as Bluffview, Chestnut Ridge and others. By allowing higher concentrations of homes that in turn creates a higher concentration of people and pets. Complaints regarding uncontrolled dogs growling at passersby or neighbors in their yards; endless barking at all hours; smells; and pet owners taking their dogs for a walk and leaving waste in neighbors yards continue to grow. Do you have any suggested improvements to Ringgold’s ordinances to help these situations?

3) The city continues an effort to annex commercial property along Battlefield Parkway adding demands on services such as police from new commercial residents. Once complete Ringgold is expected to stretch beyond Pine Grove Road. While additional tax revenue from commercial businesses will help to supplement Ringgold’s bottom line, do you feel the annexations are the right direction for the city and why or why not?

4) Ringgold recently committed to install the Ringgold interceptor to deliver the basin’s sewage to Moccasin Bend sewage treatment facility at an approximate cost of $9 million to be financed over 30 years. What future plans should Ringgold make to deliver sewage services to the area?

5) Industrial development is a goal that leaders around the country are seeking to bring jobs to their community and increase their tax base to offset losses created by providing services to residents not reimbursed by residential property taxes. What ideas do you have to bring more industry and thus jobs to Ringgold?

6) Why are you the best candidate for Ringgold City Council?

O.C. Adcock (Incumbent)

A phone message left for Councilman O.C. Adcock on his home voice mailbox and a phone message given to his wife seeking Mr. Adcock’s participation in answering candidate questions were not returned.

G. Larry Black (Incumbent)

1. The city needs to be marketed; the depot is complete and is being rented for weddings, meetings, dinners, etc.; we have a creek walk and sidewalks from the hotels at Boynton Drive and Highway 151. The creek walk is being expanded on green space property the city owns. The city also needs to install historic looking signage at the major intersections directing toward downtown.

2. The city has hired a codes enforcement officer to handle items such as this. Ringgold already has the necessary codes, 14-1 through 14-113.

A new ordinance is being reviewed by the city to make any further subdivision lots larger in R2, to a minimum of 100 feet wide and the home must be 40 feet from the front building line and 15 feet from the side building line. This would reduce the number of homes.

3. Annexations are the right way to grow and to increase the tax base. The city has the police and fire facilities to meet the needs of the annexed areas.

4. Ringgold is under a state mandate to update our sewer system, after the interceptor is installed; plans should be made to run sewer lines south on Highway 151 and south to I-75 exit #345, at Truck City south of Ringgold.

5. When the interceptor line is complete to Moccasin Bend, Ringgold will have 3.5 million gallons a day sewer capacity, the city should be looking for land to develop an industrial park, and with the sewer and industrial park, that should attract industries to our area.

6. I have been on the council for 8 years, during this time; I have furthered my education by taking courses through the Georgia Municipal Assoc-iation to help me become a better councilman. I have spent many hours volunteering my time to try and make Ringgold a better place to live.

Tom Clark

1. We should bring back the “Ringgold Opry.” When the City Council closed it down it was bringing to Ringgold between 200 and 300 tourists every Saturday night with practically no expense to the city. Next we should consider closing Cleburne Street to traffic and developing it into a pedestrian mall for use by our current businesses, a number of new kiosk stands and new businesses that might wish to start up on the north side of the street. We should develop Ringgold Gap into a park so people will have something to see when they arrive. We should consider buying the Whitman House if it becomes available.

2. Everyone enjoys pets but we must make a decision as to whether the streets belong to the pets or the children. The city now has a leash law. If pets are outside their owners’ property they are subject to being picked up and taken to the pound. If the city doesn’t have the manpower, consideration should be given to requesting help from the County Animal Control Department.

3. Commercial growth is good for the city because it brings in revenue. It is also good for the businesses being annexed because they obtain the services they need. Since the county gave the city the right to expand the sewer system east of Boynton Ridge, the degree to which the city can expand is almost unlimited for the foreseeable future.

4. First, we must provide good service to the areas in which we already have responsibility for sewer service. Next, we should consider running a line east to Truck City and open up the entire area of the county east of White Oak Mountain.

5. Expanding our sewer system up Pleasant Valley and east of the mountain will increase sites where businesses can locate. We should not ignore the needs of the businesses we already have nor the need to help the many small family businesses in our city. The second largest business in the state is tourism. We have everything that is needed in Ringgold except a plan and the ability to get over two people headed in the same direction at the same time. Closing down the “Ringgold Opry” was a step backward. We need to open it back up as soon as possible and develop the Ringgold Gap Battlefield as a historical park.

6. I am a native of Ringgold. Both my wife and I are active in the Ringgold First Baptist Church. We have been married for 46 years and have three grown children and eight grandchildren. I serve on the “1890 Days” committee and the “Down Home Christmas” committee. I currently serve on both the city and county zoning boards.

We need a change. We need a viable tourism industry. We need to take advantage of the many historical assets we have in our town and in the surrounding area. I have the vision of how this could be done and look forward to an opportunity to make this happen.



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