Franklin’s Vice Mayor Stacy Guffey is seeking a different seat at the table. In February, Guffey said he would run for a second term on the Town Council; however, following Mayor Jack Horton’s announcement on June 2 that he would not run for re-election, Guffey says he will make a run for the mayor’s seat.
“Jack’s been a good mayor,” Guffey said, adding that the mayor has helped create a cohesive board. “We don’t always agree 100% of the time, but one good thing about the board is that we’re all there because we have the idea that we want Franklin to be a better place for the people that live here. Jack’s been really good at balancing out the differences in opinion and he’s been a moderating voice.”
Guffey, who has 25 years of public service in various capacities, said he wants to continue to serve and carry out some of the work that has been start’ed during his four years on the council.
One of those is the future of the old Angel Medical Center property on Riverview Street. The property is still owned by HCA Healthcare, but the council wants to have a role in the decision making concerning the property since it is right in town. In January, the council voted to have the UNC School of Government’s Development Finance Initiative conduct a feasibility study for the property and expects to have that report this fall.
“That’s a real big opportunity for us. What I hope is that we create a new neighborhood there. Part of it will be a good opportunity to bring more vitality to downtown Franklin, but the other part is maybe it’s an opportunity to take a bite out of some of the issues we have locally like affordable housing or housing availability in general for people who work for a living. It’s a good opportunity to start with a clean slate and make a walkable neighborhood that connects to our downtown. That’s another quality-of-life project.”
He said town officials recently met with representatives from the N.C. Department of Transportation to talk about concerns related to Main Street. The street is owned by the state, but the town frequently gets complaints about the condition of the road, speeding and safety.
During the meeting, Guffey said one of the DOT reps said, “That’s our road, but this is your town, and we want you to have a voice in the way that road functions.”
Main Street is slated to be repaved in 2027, but before that the town needs to make some infrastructure upgrades along the street, Guffey said. They are also considering a Main Street redevelopment plan that would address the sidewalks, beautification and pedestrian safety. Guffey said they often get complaints about how narrow the sidewalks are and that they limit outdoor dining and retail opportunities. He said he would like for people to see Franklin as an option for people looking for a place to hang out in the evenings rather than driving to neighboring towns like Sylva and Clayton.
Guffey said housing and access to health care are issues the town cannot solve alone, but they can continue to work with others to address needs in the community.
“You get in the middle of these things, and you just want to try to see them through,” he said.
For some projects, four years as a council member is not enough time to see them to completion. The mayor serves a two-year term and does not have a vote unless there is a tie. Guffey said he wished both of those things were different.
Should he be elected mayor, Guffey would lose his chance to vote on issues that come before the council. “That was probably the one thing I had to think the hardest about,” he said. “Do I want to give up having a vote on Town Council?”
But he said after talking to others who have served as mayor, he learned it is still possible to make a difference if you put in the time and the work.
“It’s a matter of if you show up and help move these projects forward, then that’s how you get them done without actually having a vote.”
In addition to his years in public service, Guffey’s family has lived in Macon County for generations, which gives him a perspective on all the changes in the county. Also, in his work as a program manager for NC Growth, he travels the state, meeting people and working with small towns and rural communities. He sees what works in other places.
“All the things I see them doing are things that I can bring home to Franklin.”
Guffey says he sees a lot of positive energy in the town and that the board and staff are wrapping up projects that have been on the books for years.
“It’s just a lot of good things happening and when you get momentum like that it gives you the motivation to put in the work,” he said. “I can’t say enough about how pleased I am with our board and the vision that everybody on that board has about trying to make Franklin a better place for the people who already live here.”
He said for many years there was an emphasis on bringing tourists to the area, but that focus has shifted. “We’ve all agreed that if you make a great place for the people who live here, visitors will come.”
Government that works
Guffey said he wants people to see that local government is a level of government that works. He points out that people can come to the monthly meetings to talk about concerns; the contact information for the council members is posted on the town’s website; and you can see council members at the store or walking down the street.
As an example, he recalls the Town Council meeting when a woman came to talk about the need for a playground equipped for children with special needs. Following that meeting Guffey said he got emails from other people supporting the playground.
“It never crossed my mind that was a need, and I didn’t know there was such a large community of kids that needed that.”
The town made that one of its priorities for the Whitmire property in East Franklin and work on the playground is expected to begin this summer. “That’s going to be done because one person came,” Guffey said.
He would like to see more people get involved. “Not enough people show up to tell us what they want and what they need, and you can make a huge difference,” he said.
Guffey said he is glad Town Council is a non-partisan board and hopes it remains so. “We do not have to deal with partisan politics and national issues, which will suck the life out of anything you’re trying to do at any level of government,” he said.
He said he is aware there are people from both parties trying to get people to run for the local seats. He hopes that the races this fall are competitive as it makes for better candidates and a more informed public if there is some debate about issues.
“But one thing I would say, I would caution the people who are into partisan politics to keep it out of town government,” he said, adding that many issues the town deals with should not be driven by party politics. “I can’t imagine how a liberal or a conservative . . . I mean what’s the difference in terms of if we need to build water and sewer capacity. What’s the liberal and conservative perspective on that if you have to purchase a new clearwell? To make sure that people can flush the toilet; is there a liberal way to flush the toilet, a conservative way to flush the toilet? When you’re building the sidewalk is there a liberal sidewalk and a conservative sidewalk?”
Guffey continued, “I just want to make sure that this is the one corner of government where I want us to stay immune to that kind of thing because it just locks down the conversation, and it creates a lot of animosity. Bottom line is I want to keep it where the local government here in the Town of Franklin is the one level of government you can look at and say those folks are getting stuff done because that’s what it’s about. It’s not about your party or your worldview, it’s about what can I get done for the people who live here.”
Election filing
Filing for the Franklin and Highlands municipal elections opens July 7 with a deadline of July 18. In addition to the Franklin mayor’s seat, three positions on Town Council are up for election – the seats currently held by Guffey, David Culpepper and Rita Salain.