Morgan, Yates Vying for St. George Mayor, Nine Seeking 3 Seats on St. George Council

The Rotary Club of St. George sponsored a candidates forum on Tuesday, March 11 that turned into a spirited debate.

Here are highlights, gleaned from the remarks of the two candidates for Mayor, five candidates for two At-Large City Council seats, and four candidates for the Council seat from District 4. This report lists the candidates in the order that they spoke.

Mayor of St. George

Jim Morgan, a former senior executive vice president in banking, briefly paused his campaign but is back on the campaign trail. Morgan told St. George residents gathered at Woodlawn Baptist that his top priorities as Mayor would be:

1. Schools. Create the best school district in the State of Louisiana, attracting the best and the brightest with a special emphasis on tech jobs.

2. No City Manager. When you have a privatized city, the program director of the company with the management firm is the City Manager, and there is no need to pay a high salary to anyone else.

3. Reject $160,000 Salary and donate part to fund the new superintendent of schools.

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Mayor Dustin Yates was one of the three original organizers of St. George and spent 12 years working to create the city. He has a lifetime of service as a teacher, coach, firefighter, and assistant fire chief. He was appointed Interim Mayor by Gov. Jeff Landry.

His top three priorities are:

1. Schools. Create a great school system for our children. A bill to do this will be introduced this spring.

2. Public Safety. Focus on our police, fire, and EMS and make St. George the safest city in the state.

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At-Large City Council

Two to be Elected

David Dellucci. A veteran of 13 years in Major League baseball and currently a broadcaster for ESPN and the SEC network, Dellucci and his wife are raising their daughter here. His top priorities are:

1. Crack Down on Crime. As a burglary victim, he knows the devastating effect on citizens.

2. Youth Sports Programs. We have some of the worse parks, and he wants to provide great parks and training programs for our children.
3. Sensible Development. If it’s wetlands, it stays wetlands. If it’s a low lying area, it does not get developed. As a citizen appearing to testify at City Hall, he was treated badly, and he wants to make sure that never happens in St. George.

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Scott Emonet. A businessman and attorney with 25 years’ experience, he is pro-life and pro-2nd Amendment. His priorities are:

1. Crime.  He wants to insure our police have the resources and support they need.

2. Community Schools. Create options for our children to have their own high quality, safe public schools.

3. Work with City-Parish government, not against it.

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Scott Johannessen. A graduate of Woodlawn High and LSU, he has lived in St. George for 44 years. His whole life has been devoted to service. He was in business for many years and served in the Louisiana National Guard with deployments to Panama and during flooding here. He has served on the Municipal Police and Fire Civil Service Board.  His priorities are:

1. Fix Our Horrible Roads. 

2. Develop a Great Education System for St. George.

3. Take Care of the Homeless Problem. Move them up and out.

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Jim Talbot.  A long-time realtor, developer, and investor, he served in the Navy and as a Reserve Deputy at the Sheriff’s Office for many years without pay. He served almost 10 years on the EBR School Board, which made him realize how important it is for St. George to have its own schools.  His top priorities are:

1. Good Public Schools.

2. Crime. As a law enforcement officer, he understands the severity of the crime problem.

3. Being Responsive to You the Citizen. He is committed to listening to you and reflecting your views on the issues.

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Shaunn Wyche. He worked for 20 years in sales in the car industry.  Since the City of St. George was created, he has been one of the most active participants at Council and City Charter meetings. His top priorities are:

1. Agreement with the City-Parish on Services in order to end the confusion.

2. A Budget that Is Clear and Transparent.

3. Forming Partnerships with State and Federal Government in order to secure funding so the city will not rely so much on the sales tax.

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City Council – District 4

Patty Cook. She was wed in St. George 24 years ago and has been deeply involved in the community. She joined the St. George movement 14 years ago and helped run the petition drive.  She was part of the core group and experienced all the adversity. 

She is an appointed member of the City Council and was co-chairman of the City Charter Commission. Her priorities:

1. Schools. Have quality education for all our children and keep families here.

2. Crime. Her daughter is afraid to go out at night, which is symptomatic of the situation we face.

3. Blight and Cleaning Up the City.  We have too many owners of rental property and too many neighbors who do not keep up their property. We need a sense of pride and we need to keep families here.

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David Madafarri. Has been involved in the St. George movement for the past two years. His family’s commitment to education led them to home schooling. As incorporation has unfolded, it has been a great civics lesson for his children. His desire to be part of the community led him to do videos on what is happening here.  Now he hopes to be an independent voice for St. George.  His top priorities:

1. Schools. We should reimagine public schools and draw ideas from many of the things done in home schooling such as classic education, life skills, and vocations.

2. Civic Engagement. It’s hard to get to meetings. We should have more zoom calls and other ways to communicate.

3. Cost Efficiency and Transparency.

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Shannon Powell. She has worked for the government including as a probation officer, Head Start worker, and as a criminal justice coordinator. She wants to build strong families in St. George. Her top priorities are:

1. Giving Good Information to the Community so we can make informed decisions.

2. Community Involvement. There is not enough participation at Council meetings. Make it fun.

3. Fiscal Responsibility. Be conservative with our money.

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Justin Turner.  A business owner who owns a pipeline inspection agency His wife runs a nonprofit dog rescue  organization. In business and now for St. George, it’s important to get everything right the first time.  His priorities:

1. Education and schools. We should move forward expeditiously and start our own schools perhaps with a charter school model. The Basis charter is a good model.

2. Crime. Community involvement is important.

3. Salaries of City Officials. Salaries are too high, and that decision should be reversed.