CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – Mark Riggins had a bit of a theme for his campaign: “From the jackhammer to City Hall,” reflecting how he started with the City of Clarksville 30 years ago in an entry-level job, then worked his way up to leadership positions, culminating in his election victory Tuesday night.
In some ways, Riggins is about to have to work his way up again.
First, he won a tight three-way mayor’s race only 2.8 percentage points ahead of his closest contender, in a nail-biter Election Night that at some points had Riggins slightly behind. “We knew it would be close, but we thought we would win,” Riggins said Wednesday in a Clarksville Conversations interview with host Charlie Koon.
Second, the incoming mayor inherits a city financial crisis, legal disputes, stalled capital projects and lingering tensions connected to all three. Riggins is confident he can handle it. “Any time there’s a conflict, or an argument or a disagreement or a split in two, the people who suffer are the citizens. And we don’t have room for that,” he said.
Finding way out of financial hole
Riggins said his top priority going in will be to “regain the trust of the public.” Without calling out any individuals or groups, he said there’s a lack of trust right now in the city, and he’s committed to fixing that.
One step will be an in-depth audit of the financial situation. The city already has annual state audits to ensure the books are being being handled properly. But Riggins is looking for a deeper dive by an outside group that will gauge the financial health of the city – its revenue, its expenses and its debt – “and hopefully give us some options for best practices on getting out of this hole we seem to be in.”
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Of course, the mayor can’t do that alone, and he plans to meet individually with each City Council member to understand the needs and priorities of their wards. It’s important, he said, to build relationships on the front end so they can tackle these problems together.
Unfinished city capital projects
Another top priority will be seeing the big capital projects to completion. Riggins mentioned the widening of Tylertown Road, and that sidewalks and street lights had been removed from that project. Riggins plans to find a way to put those back in, saying, “If you’re (already) doing a widening project, it’s never going to be cheaper.”
He also wants to complete Spring Creek Parkway and Mason Rudolph Golf Course improvements. On the stalled Exit 8 sports complex, he said there are some private entities that may be interested in a partnership that would help the city see it through.
Roxy Performing Arts Center
On the Roxy Performing Arts Center project, Riggins said he was “pleased” to see the council delay until February the vote on co-signing the construction debt note, “only because I was concerned that if they had not postponed it, it would have failed, and we didn’t want that.” He said the council wants to see evidence of outside financial support such as donor pledges before taking that risk.
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He also said some Clarksville industries have expressed interest in making significant donations. “We know the major industries in town, who care about the community and want to invest in the community.” Riggins included the two incoming full-service hospitals among the possibilities. “I think those are the (type of) groups who would be interested in giving the kind of money we’re going to want to see to get that price tag down so the city can back up that note.”
Riggins role: to be ‘everybody’s mayor’
On the legal dispute with the Ajax Turner Senior Center, Riggins said he wants to get both sides together, lay out the facts and “work through those issues and try to sort this out.” Whatever the solution, he said, “This is a nonprofit … and if there’s a nonprofit already successfully serving the public in some way, we as a city don’t need to be competing with them on that; we should be supporting them.”
Riggins acknowledged there are a lot of factions in Clarksville on these and other issues, but his role is to be “everybody’s mayor.”
“As the city, we work for our citizens, and we’re never going to forget who we work for,” Riggins said. “I care about everybody, I care about this city, and I’m here to serve them. I’m here for them. I’m very excited about getting to work.”
| PREVIOUSLY:
- ‘Time to move Clarksville ahead, together’: Riggins wins tight mayor’s race
- First 100 days: Riggins on plans if he’s elected
- Riggins raises 11 times nearest opponent
- Riggins on growth solutions, homelessness and Mason Rudolph debates
- Gas & Water General Manager Riggins running for mayor
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