Meet the candidates for Macon Water Authority’s contested races
Bibb County voters will have their say in three Macon Water Authority races in this year’s primary elections.
The District 2, District 4 and at-large seats are all contested. Elaine Lucas, who currently holds the District 1 post, is running unopposed.
Early voting is happening now through May 15, and Election Day is May 19.
In recent interviews with The Telegraph, candidates addressed infrastructure issues, lowering water rates, data centers, flooding and storm preparedness in their campaigns.
Here are the candidates and what you need to know:
Macon Water Authority chairman, at-large
Incumbent Gary Betchel, who works in commercial real estate, is running against Desmond Brown for chairman. Brown previously occupied the District 2 seat, but left that post in March to run for Betchel’s position.
Brown ran for MWA chairman in 2022 but lost to Betchel. He also faced multiple ethics violations, including allegedly defrauding elderly women through his business and accusations of conflicts of interest on the water board due to his business interests, according to local media reports from 13WMAZ and The Macon Newsroom.
“ (Brown’s) got a bit of a checkered past,” Betchel told The Telegraph. “I’m not certain that Macon-Bibb County ratepayers and those that rely on our system instill the confidence necessary for them to trust him as chairman of the authority.”
As of May 6, Brown had not responded to Telegraph requests for comment.
Betchel wants voters to know that they can trust him “to do the things necessary to maintain our system to have reasonable rates, and you know, participate in economic development activities that are important to the overall economic growth of Macon-Bibb County, which the authority is a very essential part of,” he said.
Betchel also aims to “keep costs down and ensure that our water is safe and clean,” if he’s re-elected, according to his campaign materials.
Brown wants to ensure taxpayer dollars are “properly spent” and calls himself the “whistleblower,” according to campaign material on his Facebook page.
He seeks to reduce the consumption of storm drainage water, ensure drinking water guidelines are met and eliminate sewage overflows. Brown also wants to make the billing system “more customer-friendly,” eliminate stormwater utility fees on certain places of worship and form a task force dedicated to addressing stormwater emergencies, the campaign materials said.
District 2
Ron Lemon, Sharif Robbins-Brinson, Renoalda Scott and Marshall Talley are running for the open District 2 seat.
Lemon, a chiropractor, told The Telegraph his experience running a business gave him the “skills necessary to help the board run smoothly and efficiently.”
“The water authority is a critical part of the Macon-Bibb County region, and we need to make sure that we keep the authority moving in a positive direction,” Lemon said. “I pledge to make sure the MWA is responsive to consumers’ needs and that we do everything we can to keep our award-winning water affordable and safe for all.
“I’ll bring common sense and no drama to the board,” Lemon said.
Robbins-Brinson, a student at the University of North Georgia, said he will advocate for stronger water testing, higher safety benchmarks and a system that prioritizes the long-term health of residents. He would also let county residents have access to information regarding their water quality so “every resident knows what is in their water and trusts what they are being told,” his campaign website said.
“I was inspired at a local community meeting where the Macon Water Authority was discussed. There was a call to action that sparked my interest. When the position for my district was vacated, I decided to throw my hat in the ring,” the news release said. “I’m running because District 2 deserves water standards built around health, not legal loopholes. There should be easy-to-understand transparency, and a Water Authority held to a higher standard.”
He also wants to ensure leadership is proactive, responsive and accountable on matters regarding water quality, consistency and residents’ concerns. Robbins-Brinson also wants to modernize infrastructure and equity for clean water across the district.
Scott, a property manager, wants to ensure residents have clean, reliable water and fair rates, she said in a Facebook post. She also wants to make sure that the board spends and invests responsibly in infrastructure before problems happen.
“I want voters to know that I am running to serve the community, not special interests, and that I will remain consistent before and after the election,” Scott told The Telegraph. “Too often people say one thing during campaign season and do something different once they are in office. I’m not that person.”
Talley, program director and entrepreneur, seeks to address matters concerning data centers in Macon. He said on his campaign website that data centers consume a lot of water for cooling, which could potentially impact places that face high temperatures and droughts.
“If a project cannot show that it will protect drinking water reliability and avoid transferring risk to existing customers, it should not move forward,” according to his campaign website
Talley also criticized how negotiations to implement data centers move faster than the public’s understanding of what is happening in their community.
If elected, he seeks to maintain a “hard-no stance” to ensure that data center developers are transparent with the public, according to his campaign website.
District 4
Incumbent Frank Patterson, the longest-tenured member of the MWA, will be running against Michael McKeever, a program manager, and De’Ron Rogers, owner of Pinky Shaved Ice.
Patterson has represented District 4 since 2004. During his time on the board, he formed a stormwater utility division to oversee stormwater management, rehabilitated two wastewater treatment facilities and expanded high-quality water and sewer infrastructure, according to the MWA.
He also upgraded the MWA’s financial and customer service software and identified “hot spots for repair or replacement” in pipes across Macon, according to the MWA.
McKeever told The Telegraph that, if elected, he seeks to replace outdated pipes and advocate for infrastructure improvements. Doing so would “prevent flooding that we see with rainstorms,” he said.
His other goals include ensuring that the county’s water quality goes “above and beyond” mandated legal standards and providing the public with monthly financial reports, McKeever said.
Rogers wants to “keep water rates as low as possible and to really get busy … replacing our infrastructure,” she told The Telegraph. She wants to use her experience as a business owner, like her problem-solving skills, to address challenges at the MWA.
“I think that a lot of times, fresh eyes are always a good idea,” Rogers said. “That’s why a lot of companies, you know, do self-audits and third-party audits, just so they have fresh eyes, or they bring new people on their boards.”
“It’s just time for a change,” Rogers said.
