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Tony HuntCandidate for Hoke County Commission (Democrat) • Why should I be a commissioner? On May 8th the citizens of Hoke County will have the opportunity to re-elect someone with over 15 years of experience in office. That person happens to be Commissioner Tony Hunt. Hoke County is one of the fastest growing counties in our state, and the last 10 years have been critical for Hoke County’s future. Growth is good for our community but the growth must be smart. As commissioner I understand the issues we face as a fast growing county. We have in place infrastructure wastewater treatment plant to ensure we have a balance of residential and commercial growth. The next four years will continue to bring growth in Hoke County and leadership is needed that understands the growth. As a county, we must embrace the growth with the intelligence of ensuring we maintain smart growth. Our positive relationship with the Hoke County School Board and the progress made in ensuring our children receive a high quality education must continue as well. I, along with the other Hoke County Commissioners and the School Board are working together to ensure our children are college and career ready when they graduate from Hoke County High School. This relationship ensures our children will be ready to become productive tax-paying citizens; ready for the challenges of life. Your vote for me, Commissioner Tony Hunt, will provide an experienced and proven leader for Hoke County. • Would you support a plan to build a new high school, and if so, where? What if it means raising property taxes? Building a new high school is not a decision made solely by the Hoke County Board of Commissioners. The Hoke County School Board must request to the board of commissioners for the funds to build. This request, if made by the school board, must be economically feasible. My decision to raise taxes, if needed, would be made once the amount (cost of the school) and effect it will have on our citizens of Hoke County is determined. During my tenure over the last 11 years, as a commissioner, our board has collaborated with the school board. The two boards have always made decisions in the best interest of the children of Hoke County Schools. • Where do you stand on gun control, including issues such as banning or restricting the sale of assault-type weapons and instituting universal background checks? As a US citizen I believe in the 2nd amendment and citizens have the right to bear arms if they choose. I do believe, however, that restricting the sale of certain types of weapons is something our state and federal representatives must continue to debate and regulate as needed for the safety of our citizens. I agree with allowing gun violence restraining orders and universal background checks. • What’s your plan for directing the growth in the eastern, western and southern areas of Hoke County? Directing growth in Hoke County has been occurring since April 4th, 2004, when the county adopted the Hoke County Land Use Plan (posted on our county website). Once the land use plan was adopted, the county developed the Hoke County Zoning Ordinance (which is also on our county website). This zoning ordinance is the document the commissioners follow to determine the types of growth in the various communities of the county. These are also the documents developers follow when deciding to purchase land in Hoke County and type of property use. The land use plan document helps the county protect property rights and preserve property values. There is also a Land Use Map within this document that identifies the Rural Agriculture Area, Rural Low Density Residential Area, Urban Service Area, and Economic Development Area. When we realized the need for our own WWTP (Waste Water Treatment Plant), we developed the Sewer Service Area Map. This map helps the commissioners direct growth within our sewer service area. Directing growth in the different areas of the county is about following our zoning ordinance and making changes to our ordinance to ensure we maintain smart growth. The growth of our county has not been hap-hazard. Much thought has been put into our plans for growth in Hoke County for years. This has been accomplished by outstanding citizens who are willing to serve on the various committees. These committees worked to develop these documents that help direct the growth of the county. The commissioner’s role is to follow the ordinances and protect all the citizens of the county. We need informed leaders and leaders that understand the bright future that Hoke County already has and can help that future be even brighter. • What facilities needs are most pressing in Hoke County, and how would you address those needs? The greatest need is to grow the county’s tax base. During the past eight years we have put in place the infrastructure needed to help facilitate the growth in Hoke County. Some of my opponents continue to say we are driving across our county line to spend our money. I suggested they ride over to Stone Gate Plaza and have something to eat from the three different new restaurants located in the plaza. While there, you can also get a haircut, pedicure, manicure, stop by the pharmacy to pick up medicine, and get a quote on your insurance. These types of commercial developments are coming to Hoke County and this is how we grow our tax base. In order to grow our tax base, we must have commercial and residential growth. The residential growth will help bring the commercial growth and a balance of these two types of growth will grow our tax base. We must also continue to have a productive working relationship with our existing industries and support them in their growth. Butterball has added about four hundred more jobs to the two hundred jobs already at the processing plant acquired from the House of Raeford. This was made possible by the support from the Raeford City Council and Hoke County Board Commissioners. These types of projects can only be accomplished when elected officials from the city and county work together. Growing our tax base is dependent on the relationships we have developed between local, state and federal officials. As a commissioner during the last 11 years, I have been part of fostering these relationships. Time doesn’t have to be spent building relationships with other elected officials, because I already have that relationship. • What is your stance on the ongoing SBI investigation? The SBI investigation is ongoing as far as I know. As for the commissioners we have done our due diligence to be transparent to the Hoke County citizens. The completion of the investigation is in the hands of the SBI. • What would you do to make Hoke County a safer place to live? Making Hoke County safer entails our board of commissioners to continue support for our law enforcement. We have given the Sheriff department a 5% pay increase in our 2017 budget and we increased the differential shift pay for jailers by 5%. At this present time we contribute 25% of our total budget to public safety. This is why we have a need to continue to grow our tax base. Supporting our law enforcement in the county in order to keep our citizens safe is most important to me. • What’s your stance on the grassroots efforts to incorporate Rockfish into a municipality? As a commissioner, would you support it? The effort to incorporate Rockfish is in the hands of the citizens of Rockfish. If they believe the community can receive better services by being incorporated, then it should be left to the citizens of Rockfish. • What are some common complaints you hear from citizens or that you yourself have about the county, and how would you address them? We have a public input session for our citizens to voice their concerns to the commissioners. When citizens use this process, we listen. If we can assist with the concerns they have, we do, or we direct them to the people who can.
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