Write-in candidate Philip Hanks, who is running for Grant City Mayor, told the Express Thursday that he wanted to see more businesses come into Grant City. For that to happen, he said that if elected, he wanted to focus on roads, water lines, and sewer. He said he found a company that sells recycled plastic, which he says lasts 10 times as long as conventional material for roads. For water lines and sewers, he says he wants to pursue all possible avenues of funding for replacing all the old water lines and sewers in town. Currently, the city is in the process of paying off a voter-approved bond issue that recently replaced the 11 mile line going to the Middlefork Lake. Hanks said that as a last resort, he would pursue another bond issue. He said he feared that there was not enough water in Middlefork.
Regarding ordinance enforcement, he said that some enforcement went too far, and other aspects didn't go far enough. Regarding code enforcement, Hanks said that he would respect the property rights of owners and that he would enforce violations only if it was on city right of way. "A lot of these people are old and have fixed incomes and can't necessarily do it themselves," he said. He said that if the city must act on a property, the least they could do was help to clean up such properties for a fee. "There are some properties that I don't like, but it's still their property," he said. He said that one problem he wanted to see enforced was speeding. "I hear people driving by at 2 and 3 in the morning all the time," he said. He said he wanted to bring back the 1950's curfew that was set for midnight. Hanks said he wanted to see the city hire two deputies and share costs with the Worth County Sheriff's Department.
Until about 10 years ago, Grant City used to have cable service; however, that company went bankrupt. Hanks said he wanted to see cable TV brought back to town. He said that he had talked to a company, and they said they were open to coming, but they would have to be invited. Hanks said he wanted to see local channels like KQ2 and the Kansas City and Des Moines stations. He said they could offer it for cheaper than Dish or DirecTV.
Another thing Hanks wanted to see was to bring back both the County Fair and the Fall Festival. Back in 2006, the county had both; now, they have neither, although the Livestock Show is still held annually. He wanted to see a community center built like they did in Albany several years ago, and more after-school activities for kids, to give them something to do. "Right now, the Skating Rink closes in March, and the kids have nothing to do," he said.
Hanks promised to be a full-time mayor if elected. "My office door will always be open for anyone who has ideas for improving the city," he said. He said he wanted to work with other mayors and the county to make these ideas happen. "If we can get some of these things off the ground, the whole county would benefit," he said. Hanks said that the current mayor, Debbie Roach, was doing a good job, saying the city was doing a good job of providing services. "I think we can do more to attract more people and business to Grant City," he said.
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