SALISBURY, Md.- There are now just about three weeks to go
until people in Salisbury cast their votes in the city elections.
Current mayor, Jim Ireton, is up for re-election. Challenging him is
Joe Albero. Both are talking about their plans to revitalize
Salisbury's economy.
And that could very well be the number
one issue for voters. Albero has just unveiled his economic
development plan. Meantime, Mayor Ireton is waiting on council
members to implement his plan, introduced nearly two years ago. The
two have different visions for how to move Salisbury forward.
Empty
storefronts litter the downtown Salisbury area.
"The
downtown has been probably in the state it's in for what I can
remember, 20 to 25 years, and I think it's something that does need
to be revitalized," said Joe Ruark, who works in Salisbury.
Both
Mayor Ireton and challenger, Joe Albero, agree on that point. But
they differ on how to get it done.
"We can't keep using
waterfront properties as parking lots," said Ireton. "We've got
to redevelop those mixed use, condos up top, businesses in the
middle, commercial space down at the bottom. We've got to utilize
that commodity that we have. The waterfront, the historic district.
If it's renovated in downtown, it's rented."
"Under my
administration, you will not see the parking lots sold for Jim
Ireton's 500 affordable housing units," Albero explained. "I'm
firmly against that, because once I do revitalize the downtown plaza,
we're going to need as much parking as possible."
Albero
said his plan is all about jobs
"We've got an airport, we've
got rail, we need to bring those businesses here," he said. "And
not just pharmacies popping up everywhere, with minimum wage jobs and
part-time hours. We need real redevelopment here in Salisbury."
As
for Ireton, he said he wants to keep the momentum going.
"I'm
excited about what we've done so far, because its been a hell of a
lot of work, but there is still something that the city needs to do,"
he noted. "It needs to partner with our businesses, it needs to
create the EDU free zone downtown, in order to incentivize businesses
coming back in the urban quarter."
The other candidates
include Council Vice President Debbie Campbell, who is running for
re-election against challenger Jake Day in District Two. In District
One, Cynthia Polk and April Jackson are trying to unseat Councilwoman
Shanie Shields.
Salisbury's general election is April
2nd.
