Brown kicks off mayoral campaign

By Staff, 01/24/18 10:59 AM

PRESCOTT – Rena Brown kicked off her campaign for mayor by sponsoring a dinner meeting to make the announcement of her candidacy Tuesday, Jan. 23, at a local restaurant.

Brown kicked off her campaign, though the filing period hasn’t begun. The filing period will be the last week in Feb. and first week in March. This year, all city and county offices are up for election.

More than 30 people attended and heard Brown talk about how she and her husband, Jim, own the Hwy. 67 Flea Market and chose Prescott as their home 32 years ago. She told how they raised their three sons in Prescott, saying school was important while raising their children. She told those gathered she was one of eight children in a migrant family that traveled to different states picking what crops were in season.

Getting to the point of the meeting, Brown said she’s running for mayor because it’s time for change in Prescott. “I love Prescott,” she told the audience, adding she’s seen the town in a steady decline over the years and wants to make a difference.

“My focus will be on City Hall,” she said. “I’ll challenge the budget and work to save money. Animal control is important, but I’d like to bring it to Prescott instead of paying another community $26,000 a year to do it. I want people to be able to come to me with their concerns. I’ll have an open door policy.”

Brown said not only will she, as mayor, be accessible, but she’d make sure all department heads are accessible to the public as well. She promised to work with businesses to help them get on line, adding she’d go as far as teaching computer classes to help. She noted the electricity issue is a big one adding it will be hard to fix, if it’s not corrected by election time. Brown pointed out Prescott spent $200,000 in legal fees on the electric issue last year and has budgeted a like amount this year.

“I want to involve the community,” she said. “There’s a lot of work to be done on the budget. I want the Prescott Police Department to have all the equipment they need at their disposal. I have a brother who’s a policeman with the Hope Police Department.

“I’ll work hard as mayor and be out and about. I won’t be sitting at my desk all day every day. I’m not afraid of hard work and I’ll do the best job I can do. I’ll work to get business here and will focus on new businesses as well as industry, not just existing businesses. I’ll also look into real estate development (to improve the housing market). I hope I have your support. I’ll do all I can to make Prescott be a great place to live.”

Brown, if elected, also plans to have regular town hall meetings which will include department heads to help the public understand what’s being done in the city as well as getting input from local residents on changes they’d like to see made. She said there will be no favoritism if she’s elected and everyone will have to pay their utility bills.