Third candidate emerges for commissioner

Published Sunday, December 30, 2007

By Brandon Evans

Filings keep coming in for precinct 1 commissioner.

A third Republican candidate officially entered the race last week. John Wayne Peterson, 53, of Decatur filed on Dec. 22. Peterson is a lifelong resident of Wise County.

He said it has been a longtime dream of his to serve on the county commissioners court.

"My first job was working for the county, helping a crew that was paving Old Base Road," Peterson said.

At the age of 14, Peterson held a summer job assisting a road crew as they paved a road near his parent's property.

He said he met the precinct commissioner and was so impressed it became a position he hoped to hold one day.

If elected, Peterson said he plans to start paving all the remaining gravel roads in precinct 1 and cutting down on what he views as wasteful spending on road repairs.

"We'd start by improving the drainage," he said. "A lot of gravel roads are in bad shape in precinct 1."

Peterson said a lack of adequate drainage on some roadways in precinct 1 has caused roads to erode too quickly and therefore resulted in wasted money.

"I just see money being thrown out the door," he said. "Wise County has quite a bit of money now because of all the gas wells. But the money won't last forever. We need to go out and build the roads right while we have these extra funds.

"It would be a three, four or five year project."

If elected, he also said he hopes to establish a network with all the residents of precinct 1 in order to better understand how they feel about issues. He said an e-mail system could be used.

Peterson has worked for Top-Way Properties in Aurora for the past 20 years. Top-Way manufactures sand and gravel.

He said he has ample experience in road building and bridge building. He also said he has experience in the bidding process.

Peterson will challenge Danny White, 60, of Decatur and incumbent Robert Rankin, 57, of Decatur. Rankin is entering the final year of his first term as a commissioner. He is a retired sergeant with the Texas Department of Public Safety.

In a previous interview with the Messenger, Rankin said he plans to pave more roads and improve the status of some gravel roads damaged by flooding.

He also wants to continue working to hire a county engineer, see the Upper Trinity Groundwater Conservation District up and operating, resolve the animal shelter situation and the creation of a centralized courthouse annex.

White is a retired postal carrier who currently works with a road crew in precinct 4.

If elected, White said he will focus his efforts on improving the conditions of the roads in his precinct.

Filing update

Wise County Republican Chair D. A. Sharpe said he anticipates some possible run-off elections resulting from the primary vote.

"A quick review... indicates that at least five of our elected offices will have contested races, including three offices that will have three candidates, which gives rise to run-off possibilities if none of them poll over 50 percent in the March 4 election," Sharpe said in a press release.

For the position of county attorney, Marilyn Belew, Thomas Aaberg and James M. Stainton have all filed as Republican candidates. Incumbent Greg Lowery is not expected to run again for this position.

And for the position of precinct 4 constable, Gary Emmert, Kevin Huffman and David Shawn have all filed Republican. Democratic incumbent Joe W. Gilland has yet to file.

As of Thursday, no Democratic candidates have filed to run for precinct 1 commissioner. In fact, only two Democrats have filed for an elected position in Wise County. Dennis Hudson, an incumbent for precinct 1 constable, has filed to run again.

Also, Gerald Hartley, of Runaway Bay has filed as a Democrat to run for district attorney. The position encompasses Wise and Jack counties.

The primary election date is March 4. Early voting for the March primary will be held from Feb. 19 to Feb. 29.

The filing period to run as a candidate in the March primary ends on Jan. 2, 2008.