End of an era: Forest Acres Mayor Frank Brunson retiring after two decades
The end of a political era has arrived in Forest Acres.
Frank Brunson, who has been the mayor of the city near Columbia for 20 years, announced during a Wednesday night meeting that he will retire at the end of his current term and will not seek reelection this year.
Brunson was first elected to Forest Acres City Council in 1995, then was elected the city’s mayor in 2003.
Forest Acres, which has a population of about 10,500 according to the census, has long been a hub for retail businesses and restaurants, as well as solid schools and leafy, charming residential neighborhoods. It also recently has made headlines with the announcement that long-moribund Richland Mall will be demolished and redeveloped as part of a $100 million mixed-use project. The redevelopment of the mall site had long been a priority for Brunson.
In a lengthy letter to residents published Wednesday, Brunson said he thinks the time is right for him to retire.
“I want you to know I have been honored and truly privileged to have had the support of this community for 28 years. I hope I have fulfilled the vision you had for your city when you first elected me — one that includes a safe place to call home and raise your families,” Brunson wrote. “It is a vision of a small city with a healthy blend of residential and commercial growth, and with strong and stable finances thanks to decades of conservative and thoughtful spending.”
The longtime Forest Acres leader also called his coming departure “bittersweet,” noting the city’s residents have stuck with each other during prosperous times and even in tough moments, such as when Forest Acres police officer Greg Alia was killed in the line of duty in 2015.
“For all the wonderful highs we’ve enjoyed to the hardest moments of my tenure — the 2015 thousand-year flood and the passing of Officer Greg Alia — we have weathered literal storms and challenges as only a true community can,” Brunson said in his letter. “This community has come together in good times and in hard times to help a neighbor or stranger in need.”
Brunson said he thinks the city’s government is in good shape as he prepares to wind down his tenure.
“I feel confident in this council, in our city’s administration, and in our city’s services,” Brunson said. “I believe the people you have elected will continue to fine tune and work hard to make what we already do well here even better. And while I may no longer serve in the mayor’s office, I promise my work here is not done.”
The city of Forest Acres elections will be on May 9. There are three seats up for election this year: the mayor’s seat and the council seats currently held by Thomas Andrews and John Barnes.
Candidate filing for the Forest Acres elections will open at 8:30 a.m. Feb. 27 and close at 5 p.m. March 10. All candidates must come to Forest Acres City Hall to get filing paperwork. Election winners would be sworn in for a four-year term in July.
