Sunday, November 9, 2008

Candidates Eilers and Fire Cat joined by State Rep. Smith in endorsing Lioneld Jordan for mayor, Northwest Arkansas Times reports

 
Eilers endorses Jordan for mayor
Ward 4 alderman also gets nod from State Rep. Smith
BY KATE WARD Northwest Arkansas Times
Posted on Sunday, November 9, 2008
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/nwat/News/70930

Two former Fayetteville mayoral candidates pledged their support for Lioneld Jordan on Saturday at the Fayetteville Square.
Walt Eilers and Adam Fire Cat urged area residents to vote for Jordan during the upcoming runoff election Nov. 25 against Fayetteville Mayor Dan Coody. Fayetteville police also expressed their support by wearing T-shirts with Jordan’s name across the front.
“ He’s been my friend and my competitor for a long time, ” Eilers said. “ He has the sort of skills and experience that will help Fayetteville move forward, and I will do whatever I can to help. ”
Eilers listed Jordan’s people skills and experience as reasons why voters should choose him for Fayetteville mayor. He added that Jordan’s support for dog parks, economic development and recycling are in line with his own goals for the city.
Fire Cat, dressed in a black and white suit, said Jordan would do a better job of balancing the city’s budget.
“ There’s this illusion that everyone is at war, ” he said. “ We’re not at war with each other; we’re at war with concepts. While [Jordan ] may never agree with me on ordinances, we do believe in a balanced budget. The city has incurred a massive debt. As far as I’m concerned, numbers are black and white. ”
Fire Cat also delivered an endorsement for Jordan from Sami Sutton, another former mayoral candidate who was unable to attend the announcement.
“ It’s been a long campaign, and we’ll have to continue to have good, solid support, ” Jordan said. “ These gentlemen ran a good, clean solid race, and now we have to keep pushing forward. ”
Following the announcement, Coody said he expected the former candidates to endorse Jordan but urged voters not to be swayed.
“ I know Lioneld would make a radical change in direction that I don’t think would be positive for the city, ” he said.
Coody said he thinks the city’s fire and police departments will likely become unionized if Jordan is elected. The city of Fayetteville must maintain control of its own taxes, revenue and budget, he said.
“ If police and fire unionize, they’ll have the ability to do collective bargaining, ” he said. “ It would eventually have to extend to all 730 city employees. We don’t want to take the lead of so many other cities that are declaring bankruptcy to meet union demands. ”
Jordan refuted the mayor’s claims, saying he has no intention of unionizing the city.
“ I’ve been on City Council for eight years. I’ve never brought any labor legislation forward, and I don’t intend to, ” he said. “ I’m not running for mayor to unionize the city; I’m running for mayor to properly manage the city, which is what it needs right now. ”
Also following the Square announcement, State Rep. Lindsley Smith of Fayetteville declared her support for Jordan via e-mail.
“ I know from personal experience that (Jordan ) cares deeply about the interests of his constituents and has demonstrated a commitment to be a problem solver, cutting through red tape and getting it fixed, ” Smith wrote. “ I have been especially impressed with his effort to cut wasteful spending and be a good steward of our tax dollars.
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