Longtime Starkville attorney Johnny Moore will run for mayor in the upcoming municipal elections.
Moore, 56, has practiced law in Starkville for 30 years, and is a graduate of Mississippi State University and The University of Mississippi. He shied away from declaring a political party affiliation, and will make his partisan announcement in January. Moore said he had a contingency plan in place for his law office, if elected.
"All of my kids are grown," Moore said. "I've got some free time, and I know there's a lot of construction and development going on—these issues are going to be significant in the next four years."
Moore cited the impending implementation of the city's comprehensive plan as a key aspect in his decision to run. Aldermen could adopt the plan in December or January, paving the way to revamp Starkville's zoning map, which has been a source of contention for outside and local developers looking to start projects in Starkville.
"With the development growth that's gone on within the last few years, we've gotta maintain that momentum that's gotten us started…We're going to have to codify our regulations and our business ordinances to get them in line with today's construction environment," Moore said.
Since 2009, nearly $386 million of new, permitted construction was approved, while real property values within city limits increased over 30 percent. The city's sales tax collections have increased nearly 40 percent since 2010. In the last seven years, the city's general reserves increased over 600 percent, and Starkville shed a negative credit outlook rating in 2009.
Starkville's current zoning map is from the 1970s, and developers and community development officials deal with outdated ordinances from the 1960s, Moore said.
"It's unfair to developers and contractors," Moore added. "It's also unfair to our city employees who catch the brunt of the unhappiness with what is going on in that respect. So it puts undue pressure on them to try to mix together ordinances that are that old with today's needs. That needs to be corrected."
The comprehensive planning process faced pushback in the spring, after property owners in Starkville felt the document used improper language to describe future growth in the city. Revisions were made to the document, and the plan is available at cityofstarkville.org.
The document recommends six variations of place types: natural, rural, suburban, urban, special districts and optional districts. The move is more in line with current development trends, consultants said.
Moore stressed the importance of collaborative efforts between the city, county and Mississippi State University.
"I think that's something I think that's a real advantage our community has that hasn't been pushed as much as maybe it should have," Moore said.
Together with his wife Karen, the pair raised four sons before moving back within city limits last year. Karen Moore is certified through the Mississippi Department of Human Services to foster children, and the family previously fostered children from The Palmer Home.
"They were at our house a lot, and I thought it was important for our kids to be exposed to kids that did not have all the opportunities they should have had," Moore said.
His mayoral bid is his first attempt for public office. Moore's father served as a state senator and was responsible for introducing the bill which ultimately led the way to founding the MSU College of Veterinary Medicine.
Ward 1 Alderman Ben Carver said he believed Moore would be a strong candidate in the upcoming election.
"In my opinion, I think his experience with development would make him a hard candidate to beat," Carver said.
Moore said he would announce more detailed plans outlining his campaign in January. Qualifying for municipal elections begins Jan. 3, and ends March 3, 2017. Primaries will be held May 2, and the general election is set for June 6.