After the November election, the city of Florence may have a new mayor and turnover in three of the four city council seats.
Nola Xavier has been mayor of Florence two years. Before that, she was a city councilor for eight years. She wants to serve another term in order to complete several ongoing projects:
Xavier: "We're in the process of hiring a new city manager. We need a new police chief. We've been working with an interim in both of those positions for quite some time."
Alan Burns is a former mayor and former councilor. He owns a small business in town. He says *he has the experience to help Florence find new personnel:
Burns: "This hiring of a city manager is very vital since now we don't have any candidates whatsoever. My experience in hiring city managers in the past is invaluable, I think."
City Councilor Joe Henry is the third candidate for mayor. He is most concerned with keeping the city's budget in check.
Henry: "I've been on the city council for two years, and been fairly frustrated with some of the things that are going on in our city. So rather than resign my position I decided to run for mayor."
Hiring a police chief and city manager aren't the only issues of concern in Florence. The controversial bike path along Rhododendron Drive and the implementation of the possible tax on gasoline are also volatile subjects.
Suzanne Roberts and Brian Jagoe are vacating their city council positions. There are four candidates vying for those slots. Ballots are due by Tuesday, November fourth.