TWO COMMISSIONERS VIE FOR COVINGTON MAYOR'S SEAT

by Michael Monks 
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In the absence of Mayor Chuck Scheper, Commissioner Sherry Carran presided over last week's commission meeting and towards the close when it was time for final comments, drew awkward giggles from the commissioners and spectators. "Mayor Casper...," Carran started, before correcting herself to say 'Commissioner' Casper in asking for her colleague's remarks. Casper's intentions to run for mayor have been an open secret around City Hall and today the first term commissioner confirmed those suspicions. “I have been encouraged to seek the office by residents and business people throughout Covington," he said in a release. “I’m looking forward to talking to voters about my vision and leadership for our wonderful city."

Sherry Carran

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Carran, first elected in 2006 when she upset incumbent Alex Edmonson during the short-lived ward system, announced her candidacy last fall. In 2010 Carran was reelected to a third term and was the top vote-getter. Casper, in his first run in Covington, was second. Both have voted much the same way throughout their mutual time on the commission. "I don't think it's going to be so much a difference on our votes," Carran said today. "I think people will see the differences in our involvements, maybe the history, the experience that we bring to the commission, but as far as our votes, we really don't differ that much there."

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Both Carran and Casper voted in favor of Covington's budget contingency plan that was heavily opposed by the City's three unions representing public employees in a debate over how much those workers should contribute to their health care plans. Both candidates agree that the union negotiations that are still underway are the top priority right now. "Somehow we have to reach an accord with them, especially on health care," Casper said today. "If we do that we can reallocate part of the funds to capital improvements. We've been woefully behind on maintaining our infrastructure."

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"We spend so much energy trying to work with the unions and we just never get anywhere and it pulls us down, it pulls staff down, it pulls union morale down," Carran said. "I feel until we are able to show that this is a new time, city government is not like it used to be, it's not about game playing anymore. There are things we have to accomplish and until the union leaders understand that, it's going to be difficult." Both Carran and Casper applauded Mayor Chuck Scheper for his recent involvement in the negotiations.

Steve Casper

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Though each candidate agrees with the other on many issues there are differences that both will try to highlight on the campaign trail. "I suspect that the biggest difference I see is my past experience in leadership roles," Casper said. "I was elected President of the Cincinnati Board of Realtors as well as the Ohio Association of Realtors which has 40,000 members, a close parallel to the size of Covington. I'm confident in the leadership role."

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"I think people will see the difference in our involvements, maybe the history, the experience that we bring to the commission," Carran said. "Even though we're alike when it comes to city business, we do have different perspectives."

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Casper previously served on the city council in Wyoming, Ohio but has lived in Covington since 1997, currently in Old Seminary Square. He hopes to use his real estate background to bring new businesses to Covington. "I know brokers all over the country and a strategy should be to contact brokers in Chicago and potentially New York to create a relationship where they would be out looking for companies on our behalf to relocate," Casper said. "The cost of living is much lower here." He also suggested an entertainment district similar to Louisville's 4th Street Live and Lexington's Pavillion in the area around 7th Street between Washington Street and Madison Avenue. Additionally, he said he would focus on improving the image of Goebel Park in Mainstrasse with a focus on creating a fountain that would be timed to music with lights and in the winter months would be used as an ice skating rink.

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"It's family oriented and when families are in the area they'll get thirsty and maybe even hungry and I think it would be a coup for those eateries that we have down there," he said.

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Following the resignation of former Mayor Denny Bowman at the end of September, Carran, of Botany Hills, briefly served as interim mayor before the unanimous appointment of Scheper. She has long been active in the Covington community before running for elected office and as mayor would work toward improving the City's presence in regional discussions. "We haven't had the leadership coming from the mayor's office (before Scheper) and that's really been needed," Carran said. "Consequently, we were not at the table when regional decisions were being made. I represent the City at the Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Regional Council of Governments, and we now have city staff that also attend whereas in the past we did not. We were not on the list of highway funding but because of that, we are now. Because there hasn't been a strong leadership at the mayoral level we haven't been seen as a player by Tri-Ed or the state legislature, we haven't been seen as someone who's got a place at the table."

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Both candidates highlighted the strength, engagement and importance of Covington's neighborhood organizations and also recognized the challenges faced by the school district. Each commissioner will have more on their respective platforms as the campaign season begins in earnest. Additionally, with two commissioners vying for the mayor's job, there are now two open seats on the commission in November. Both Commissioners Shawn Masters and Steve Frank will seek reelection, but at least two new commissioners will be sworn in next year. "It's a concern," Carran said. "It could throw everything off kilter. It's important to get two people on the commission who have a good handle on the board and don't have hidden agendas and are willing to come to the table to work for the good of the whole city."

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As for their own race, Carran and Casper intend to keep the campaign positive. "I promised her I would run the same kind of campaign that I ran the first time," Casper said. "I never did any attacks on the other candidates and I'm going to follow that same path this go-round. I don't see it becoming contentious between the two of us."

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"It's going to be a tough race between Steve and I," Carran said. "I know a lot of people who like both of us and it'll be a hard decision for many. The campaign will show where we differ and where our strengths are."