Meet the Candidates: Randy Green

For Randy Green, the best part about living in Austell is its small town atmosphere where “everybody knows your name.”

“I like going into a local business and it takes me longer talking to the people I know than it does to pick up what I came for,” he stated in an email.

Green is running for the At-Large Post 2 seat on Austell’s city council, where he has served for 12 years as chairman of the Parks and Recreation and General Administration committees.

During his more than a decade on the city council, Green said he negotiated last year with Global Sports Authority, which leases the Legion Park ball fields, to offer a free recreation league for the children who live within the city limits of Austell.

He recently sold his door and window business, Remodelers Supply, which he ran for about eight years. He has lived in Austell for about 48 years and has been married to his wife, Cheryll, for nine years. He has one son and two stepdaughters.

He also managed the former Austell Food Store and owned a tire shop during the 1980s.

During the 2005 and 2009 floods, he helped coordinate flood response activities. During the most recent flood, he and fellow city councilman, Scotty Thomas, opened the city-owned grocery store to provide donated food and supplies to flood victims. Green oversaw delivery of the items.

Green prides himself on his ability to compromise and mediate. Though he said he understands he cannot make everyone happy, he always tries, he said.

“I try to look at both sides and try to find happy compromises to make everybody happy as much as I can,” he said.

If re-elected, Green wrote in a statement that he “will continue to oppose any tax increase and believe that continuing with the current effective management team for Austell, no tax increase will be necessary.”

He also stated that “enforcement in the city should be performed with compassion for each individual’s circumstance,” which he said means understanding that individuals have varying circumstances which may make them unable to adhere to certain city codes and ordinances, especially due to financial hardships.

Another goal for Green if re-elected is to “continue to encourage the Austell business community to grow and prosper.”

To do that, Green said he will work with city staff to offer business incentives, the development of which is  “a work in progress” and would also depend upon the type of business seeking incentives, he said.

“We do not need to let our residents (and customers) leave the city for such areas such as Douglas County or Paulding County. We need to keep them in the City of Austell,” Green said in a statement.

 Right now, Green sees “the economy” as the biggest problem facing Austell. “It is bad for every other city. Over time, I believe it will pick back up and the home-building industry and businesses in the city will again be successful,” he said in a statement.