We had a chat with Rick Graham, Spring Hill’s newly elected Mayor to find out his plans for the city. He has a lot on his plate with pending decisions about panhandling, the peace and quiet ordinance, zoning, infrastructure, and more. His response to all of these issues was refreshing.
“The first thing we have to do is fill the empty positions on our committees and put all the players in place before we start tackling these issues,” said Graham. “After all I am only 1 vote of 9 when it comes down to it, so our committees are key to making good decisions.” Monday, May 13th is the next scheduled BOMA meeting and they have a lot to discuss.
We ask the Mayor how he felt upon winning the election and he equated it to the birth of his son. “I took a deep breath, let out a sigh and realized that the real work was just starting.” His goal is to get the board to work together for the “betterment” of Spring Hill. His position is tough because as Mayor he deals with two different counties on all decisions. Each county has different needs and challenges and everything must be considered before decisions are made.
Mayor Graham’s first goal is to get the new interstate interchange underway. He hopes to partner with the state to get it built helping with congestion on Highway 31 and providing another route for citizens coming home from work. Right now the city is not even on the 20 year planning schedule for the state and he hopes to change that.
Graham’s second focus is ball fields. He sees a need for the community and wants to provide space for all the leagues and citizens who want to participate in sports. It is beneficial to health and fitness and gives people somewhere to congregate and enjoy life. There are more than 150 kids who do not get to participate each summer due to lack of fields explained Graham.
Spirituality is important to Mayor Graham and he hopes to bring all faiths together during his tenure by building a spiritual council. He would like to see the community come together, talk and pray for the future of Spring Hill. “Everything we do on the BOMA is to better our community,” said Graham and sharing faith is part of that.
