6 newcomers vie for Trussville City Council

Six newcomers are running for spots on the Trussville City Council this year.

Election Day is Tuesday, Aug. 25, in Trussville.

Here’s a breakdown of how the five places on the City Council and mayor spot are shaping up.

Should there be a runoff election for any of the places, it will be Oct. 6. The organizational meeting for the new administration will be Nov. 2.

MAYOR

Buddy Choat will serve his second term as mayor as he is running unopposed. In 2016, Choat defeated Anthony Montalto in a runoff for the mayoral position. Prior to Choat’s election in 2016, Gene Melton had been the city’s mayor since 1996.

COUNCIL PLACE 1

Incumbent Perry Cook is running against Wendell Gibson for Place 1. Cook, a resident of Trussville for more than 40 years and a city councilman since 2012, is looking to serve his third term. Gibson is seeking election to the city council for the first time.

Wendell Gibson has been in the medical management and diagnostic medical imaging management industry for over 30 years. He currently serves as President and CEO for MedWorks, Inc., a provider of nuclear cardiology and ultrasound/echocardiography diagnostic imaging services. He has served as a board member for a number of non-profit organizations, including Trussville YMCA, Trussville Athletic Foundation, Trussville City Schools Foundation and he currently serves on the Birmingham Division of Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

Gibson said he is running for the City Council of Trussville “because he believes our community has a unique opportunity to harness the positive growth the city will experience over the coming years to promote economic development, support critical infrastructure projects and protect and enhance Trussville’s most valuable asset, Trussville City Schools.”

COUNCIL PLACE 2

Alan Taylor, also a city councilman since 2012, will have opposition this year. Taylor, the business administrator at First Baptist Church Trussville, is running against Beckee Taunton, a 2004 Hewitt-Trussville graduate and licensed real estate agent who has worked as a property manager for commercial real estate for 11 years.

“The experience I have gained with managing commercial assets would translate well into city leadership, especially in a city that is undergoing so many capital improvements,” said Taunton, who has two daughters. “My experience with operating budgets, expense management, tenant and vendor relations, maintenance of commercial property, service contract management, lease administration and capital project management will help with running a city such as Trussville.”

Taunton said she desires to be part of continuing the “great plans and progress that Trussville has been working toward for along while.”

“The sitting council has done a fantastic job, and I want to be a part of continuing progress,” she said. “I do have ideas, and I do have social opinions. It is my belief that there is room at the table for many different opinions. We can sit at one table and achieve great things while listening to how others arrive at their ideas. This may sound lofty and too idealistic, but I have seen this come to fruition in many projects I have been a part of to date. I am willing to listen and willing to learn. That has always been my greatest asset in helping progress.”

Taylor noted that when his last term began, he and the rest of the council members pledged to complete various projects, including the greenway, the Valley Road extension and the revitalization of downtown. The first two are complete, and the third is well underway.

Taylor also noted increased funding for public safety, state-of-the-art educational facilities and maintaining a strong financial position.

“I believe my track record with the city, along with my experience in banking and business, makes me the right choice to help continue to make Trussville one of the greatest cities in Alabama,” Taylor said.

COUNCIL PLACE 3

Place 3 will be filled by a newcomer, regardless of who’s elected. With Jef Freeman deciding not to seek reelection after his only term on the City Council, Jaime Melton Anderson and Randy Schlitz will face off for the spot.

Anderson, a 1994 Hewitt-Trussville High School graduate and 22-year Air Force veteran, currently serves on the Trussville Park and Recreation Board and is a founding member of the Cahaba Dog Park in Trussville. Anderson’s key issues are diversifying city revenue, public safety, education and green space conservation.

“I am running for council because I love Trussville,” Anderson said in a Facebook Live event. “I absolutely love it. I love this town. It’s my hometown. I was blessed to be born here.”

Anderson said she wants government to be accessible.

“A lot of times people aren’t interested in city government, they’re not interested in what’s going on at City Hall. I want to change that. I want to be someone that you can pick up the phone and call and ask when something does affect your backyard or street or your family. That’s really important to me.”

Schlitz, like Anderson, is seeking election to the council for the first time. 

Schlitz and his wife Terry have lived in Trussville for nearly 35 years, with both of their children graduating from Hewitt-Trussville High School. Schlitz worked 43 years with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department, including a tenure as the Deputy Chief.

“I believe our country needs strong leadership now more than ever,” Schlitz said. “I believe this leadership starts at the local level. I am a strong supporter of the mayor and the City Council of Trussville. I love the direction of the Trussville City Schools and the infrastructure growth of our city.”

COUNCIL PLACE 4

Incumbent Brian Plant is running against Ben Short for Place 4. Plant, an attorney, is seeking his sixth term, which would be the most of any city councilman in the city’s history.

Short, a 2006 Hewitt-Trussville High School graduate, Trussville police officer for nearly a decade and local business owner, said his heart for public service led to his decision to run.

“Safeguarding our public safety entities, supporting our school system, sustained economic growth and government transparency are the foundation of my campaign,” Short said. “I want to do my part and serve Trussville. This community accepted me with open arms in 2002 when my father retired from the Air Force and relocated to Trussville. I want to ensure that Trussville continues to be the gateway to happy living for our children and the generations to follow.”

COUNCIL PLACE 5

Zack Steele, a Trussville optometrist, is running for his second term on the council. Steele said the current City Council has done “some amazing things over the last four years.”

“The entertainment district, strengthening our police and fire department, and completing and enhancing the greenway,” Steele said. “We have done all this while increasing city revenues through a pandemic and making Trussville a safer and better place to live. Property values continue to increase. Our school system has improved with the help of three new board appointments. We are headed in the right direction, and this has been one of the most synergistic councils in Trussville history. I am privileged and proud to be a part of it. And I can’t wait for the next four years.”

Steele will not be running for Place 5 unopposed. Lisa Bright, the CEO of the Will Bright Foundation who also ran a drapery design business for 25 years, will join the ballot for Place 5.

“After being approached to consider running for City Council, I reflected on all I have experienced in life and believe these experiences will be beneficial as a leader for the city of Trussville,” Bright said.

Bright said her main focus areas are addiction and mental health awareness, economic and workforce development, and downtown revitalization and safety.