Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Cooper enters race for council
Carl Cooper, an independent, said Roanoke needs to grow out of the budget crunch.
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From The Roanoke Times
Carl Cooper enters the Roanoke City Council race as the only independent candidate.
Cooper, 53, formally announced his candidacy Friday. He was the last of seven candidates to enter the race for three council seats that will be decided May 4.
Cooper faces an uphill battle on his way to Election Day. He ran in 2006 but finished ninth out of 10 candidates, and this year both Democrats and Republicans have fielded full slates of candidates.
The Democratic ticket consists of former Councilman Bill Bestpitch, lawyer Ray Ferris and incumbent Councilman David Trinkle.
The Republican ticket is retired Marine Col. Bob Craig, businessman Mike Powell and Roanoke County school official Tony Walker.
Cooper does have some timely real-life experience to bring to the race: Like many others in this economic downturn, he is currently out of work.
He said his experience as a community advocate, his passion for the Roanoke Valley and his take on governing make him a good choice for the council.
He was drawn into civics through his experiences with special needs students.
Cooper grew up with a brother who was eventually placed in a group home. Later, he and his wife raised an autistic son, who played into their decision to return from California to the Roanoke Valley.
"A funny thing happened on my way to advocate for my son," Cooper said. "There were all these other kids. ... I got really involved in that end of it, and advocating for my son, which became advocating for all of the kids in his classroom."
Those experiences have played into his call for full funding of schools. Cooper said that education and economic development go hand in hand. Other candidates have made the same connection.
Cooper decried the influence on city politics by "special interests" -- whether it's big businesses or large donors who contribute to council candidates. He said those influences often result in "false choices that get put before us."
One example, Cooper said, is a current discussion on how to balance the city's fiscal 2011 budget. One faction is calling for spending cuts to limit the size of government, while another wants to look at tax increases.
Cooper said there's middle ground: "We have to grow our way out of this. It going to take a combination of those ideas, but our focus has got to be on growth."
He said that if elected he would push to establish clear goals for Roanoke's economic development department. He said he wants to position the city as a leader in the "green economy," attracting companies on the forefront of alternative energy development.
