Meet Jr. Shelton

This article was written by Jeanie Barnett for the March issue of Crystal Place Connections. Posted on CentralSpeaks.com with her permission.

I had the opportunity to sit down and visit with I.M. (Jr.) Shelton, candidate for Mayor of Central.  At 6’ 7”, it is easy to see why his campaign slogan is so apt; “Someone we can look up to…”  While I had never had the pleasure of meeting him before, he’s been a resident of Comite Hills for 32 years.  He is a long time deacon and Sunday school teacher at Broadmoor Baptist Church.  He outlined a four point campaign:

Availability.  Jr. Shelton espouses an open door policy for the office of mayor.  He worked 36 years in a family owned Shel-Boze, which operated until December 2009.  He plans to work fully 40 hours a week as mayor.  He has also found time to serve on the board of directors for Central Private School for 16 years and as an officer with Capital Region Builders Association.

Accountability.  Though he initially did not support the incorporation of Central as a city, he wholeheartedly believes we need to pull together and support the future of Central.  He believes that as mayor he would be accountable to its citizens.

Fiscal Responsibility.  Central has a $6 million budget.  A great deal of that is paid to CH2MHill, responsible for DPW and contracts the P&Z permit sub-contractors.  He plans to take the lead in soliciting businesses to increase Central’s tax base including “Mom and Pop” and entrepreneurial enterprises such as a medical clinic, movie theater and book stores.

Fairness.  Consistency and trust are big words in Jr. Shelton’s vocabulary.  He advocates the inclusion of affordable housing developments including upscale multiple family dwellings and allowing the use of mobile homes in Central so that young families can avail themselves of our excellent schools.

He enumerated his goals:

1.  The feeling that citizens own the city.

2.  More people involved in the decision making process.

3.  A plan everyone understands and can begin working on. 

I asked, “What skills do you have that you feel qualifies you to be mayor of Central?”  His response was that his life experiences in his business, in his church and his involvement in CPS board of directors taught him how to bring people together through communication.  He emphasized that he is a Christian and plans an administration based on Christian principles.