Mizzell better choice in Council District 4 runoff

IT'S NOT SURPRISING that the Columbia City Council District 4 race comes down to two candidates with local government experience.

With the city struggling to regain its fiscal strength, set priorities and build a strategy for the future, it would benefit from the addition of an experienced, reasoned council member. The next council needs members who cherish the public's trust, make good budgeting decisions and exercise good judgment. And when they return to the polls on Tuesday, District 4 residents will choose from the two most promising candidates in what was a five-person field.

Former Columbia city manager Leona Plaugh, who worked in city government for nearly 30 years, is well-versed on the city's needs and talks passionately about wanting to help rescue it from its current predicament. She would push for a moratorium on new programs and shore up fire and police as funds allow. She insists the city didn't go into its downward fiscal spiral until after she left, although some city leaders argue that the slippage had begun before her departure.

But while she possesses a unique understanding of city government, having run day-to-day operations for two years, the circumstances surrounding her dismissal from the city present a hurdle. She came under fire for her handling of an Empowerment Zone loan for a youth home (it should have been denied); developing a document detailing plans to "destroy" several high-ranking city employees (at the time she said it was a management tool); failing to get council to approve an ordinance in support of a massive restructuring of city government; and promoting a policy that would have muzzled council members.

Fortunately, voters have an excellent alternative in Tony Mizzell, who doesn't have that sort of baggage. (We're not happy with Mr. Mizzell's failure to continue filing quarterly reports after he left office with a balance in his Richland County Council campaign account, but his explanation is not unreasonable.)

The experience Mr. Mizzell gained while serving two four-year terms on County Council, including a stint as chairman, would serve him well on City Council. Mr. Mizzell would be a catalyst for economic development. As a County Council member, he helped develop a master plan for Lower Richland and was a staunch supporter of USC's research campus as well as efforts to improve downtown Columbia.

He also would push for a strategic budgeting plan, making basic services such as police and fire a priority and focusing on rebuilding the city's depleted reserves. While demanding fiscal accountability and quickly rejecting questionable funding requests, he also would approach the budget "with a scalpel" to limit harm.

One of Mr. Mizzell's most important contributions would be his zeal for building consensus and improving city-county cooperation. He spent a considerable amount of time while on County Council pushing for the consolidation of services between Richland and Columbia - the two governments' planning departments chief among them. He proposes to use that experience to educate City Council about the benefits of consolidation, which includes cost effectiveness and efficiency. Mr. Mizzell says it makes no sense for two governments that are "Siamese twins joined at the hip" not to work together. "The public is expecting it."

He's right. Mr. Mizzell could inject some positive energy into consolidation efforts that would make a real difference in the quality of services and the quality of life for city and county residents. He should be elected.