The following is about Terry Benham and his plans for Benton, should he become elected as Mayor in 2018.
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TERRY BENHAM
www.terrybenham.com
ABOUT BENHAM:
Home is where family extends beyond bloodlines – to your friends, neighbors, and community. For over 45 years, Terry Benham has called Benton, Arkansas, home. A 1985 graduate of Benton High School, Terry has spent the last decade working as a community leader to support public safety, improve our schools, and advance the quality of life in Benton. For over 20 years, he shaped public policy at the State Capitol and in Washington, D.C., and has a wealth of relationships all over the globe. It’s time for him to use his vast experience and relationships for his hometown.
The decision to run for mayor came down to a choice: I could spend my last few years using my experience and relationships to benefit myself and my clients – or I could spend those years benefitting the community. I choose my community and hopefully, I’ll get the opportunity to serve them. – Terry Benham
Ask anyone. Terry Benham is from Benton. He routinely bores his colleagues and friends bragging about his hometown. Whether calling Panther football games on Friday nights, working on local initiatives, or telling old tales of his Future Panther glory days (Go Eagles), Terry is living the American dream in his hometown. A 1985 graduate of Benton High School, Terry met his wife Paula while attending college at UA Little Rock. They’ve been married for 22 years and are the proud parents of two awesome kids. Their family attends the Church at Rock Creek.
Terry has owned several successful businesses and is a founding partner at Impact Management Group, a consulting company specializing in public relations, public opinion, and governmental relations, with offices in Little Rock, Baton Rouge, and Washington, D.C. For over twenty years, Terry has consulted for a variety of clients including major Fortune 500 corporations, non-profit organizations, high profile individuals, and leaders in government. He has substantial experience with issues dealing with economic development, higher education, transportation, security/defense, energy, environment, and foreign affairs.
Terry served six years in the US Army Reserves, where he was a non-commissioned officer and a graduate of the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School. He was awarded the Peer and Cadre Leadership Award, the top leadership award, during his training at the Noncommissioned Officers Academy and was decorated for his efforts during Operation Uphold Democracy in Haiti. For over 20 years, Terry has both volunteered and worked as a private contractor to strengthen fragile democracies around the world.
“Being a soldier was an important step in my life. It taught me confidence, determination, and a work ethic that has served me well in business and in life. You don’t have to have a patch on your arm to be a soldier. We can all ‘soldier up’ and put our community and our neighbors first. That will always reap greater rewards than any of our pursuits for personal gain.”
Terry has been heavily involved in economic revitalization efforts for Benton over the last decade. Since 2008, he has worked with community leaders and led the public initiatives that, collectively, have raised well over $100 million in public funding for educational and economic development infrastructure. As a result, those successful projects have attracted millions more in private investment for Benton and created over 1,000 new jobs here at home.
Terry also worked with community leaders to help bring four-year degrees, including Arkansas’ first E-Commerce degree, to UALR-Benton. He helped organize and became Chairman of the UALR-Benton Advisory Board. Terry continues to pursue the expansion of higher education and career technical education options for Benton. Terry has been very involved in youth sports in Benton and sits on the Board of Directors for the Benton Touchdown Club, the Panther Developmental Football League, and Benton FC soccer club, where he also serves as General Manager.
“Growing up in Benton, there is nothing more energizing than seeing our economic success over the last several years. Mayor David Mattingly has shown what a motivated, visionary leader can do for a community. We can build upon that success by working together, and I would be honored to lead that effort.”
BENHAM’S PLAN:
An Economic & Jobs Plan for Benton’s Future
Introduction
Benton has had eight years of economic renewal with job creation and growth that is the largest in my lifetime. The City of Benton, led by Mayor David Mattingly, has done a phenomenal job with economic development. Mayor Mattingly was the right leader at the right time to break up the old way of doing things and set a path for economic revival. I was honored to work with Mayor Mattingly on the public initiatives to fund the construction of the Benton Event Center and Riverside Park, and the funding of the public safety initiative. Those public investments sparked over a hundred million dollars of private investment into our city. Now, it’s time for us to take the next step in our economic journey, and that requires leadership, business experience, and economic vision. As a conservative business leader, I’m the only candidate in the race that has executive level business experience and has successfully led public growth initiatives. I’m excited to bring that experience to work for my hometown and offer this economic and jobs plan for Benton’s future.
1. Train and Educate Our Workers
As a conservative, I believe good growth is built on economic advancement and investing in education. One of the biggest challenges we face with economic development is having a skilled labor force that’s ready to go to work. For too many years, we have taught our young people that they have to get a 4-year college degree to find a good job – that just isn’t true. There are many employment opportunities out there that allow students to make a livable wage right out of high school with the proper technical training. We need to invest in career technical education and, for those that want it, grow our local 4-year degree options. That’s why I strongly support Issue 6, the Career Technical Education Center at Exit 114. This will provide our high school students a path to good jobs with skills that are in demand and help them earn a livable wage after graduation. If they decide to go to college, they’ll be able to do that across the parking lot in a University Center, where we will have access to state funded 4-year programs.
2. Empower Small Businesses and Entrepreneurship
As a conservative businessman and owner of a consulting firm, I believe in the free enterprise system and supporting those that are trying to put people to work. Over 90% of the economy in Benton is fueled by small business owners, working hard every day. The fastest way to job growth is to support the employers we have and help them innovate and expand their businesses. As Mayor, I’ll lead the effort to develop an Innovation Hub downtown, where entrepreneurs, local business owners, and experts from different fields can collaborate on new ideas, find investors for start-ups, and help current businesses that might be struggling.
3. Reform Benton Utilities
This won’t be easy. First, Benton Utilities is an independent entity, managed by the Benton Utilities Commission, and is not under the authority of the Mayor’s office. Certainly, I respect the Commissioners and the Benton Utilities staff. My position is not adversarial but rather a desire for competitive rates and a dialog on mission focus. We have had continuous rate increases to the point that we’re no longer competitive and this is a challenge to economic development. We’ve also had situations where rate negotiations could have been handled better. Our growth in retail development is directly related to companies locating where their customers are. This is why most of our economic development has centered around retail and restaurant development. In contrast, manufacturers place a higher priority on utility costs and infrastructure to take their products to market. Currently, our commercial utility rates are significantly higher than Entergy and First Electric. Adding to the complexity is the fact that our city budget receives $1.9 Million from utility receipts so any changes that might be proposed will have a ripple effect either way we go. Thus, any serious solutions will need to be thoroughly discussed, and any changes slow and methodical. We need someone with legislative skills and business experience to negotiate a path forward with the Benton Utilities Commission that helps us be competitive, while not disrupting service. One hard question to ask… If we can’t be competitive with rates, do we really need to be in the utility business? I’m not necessarily looking to change that, but as your Mayor, I will lead this discussion in a constructive and collaborative way with the Commission so we can work together towards solutions that benefit the ratepayer and those engaged in economic development. For us to reach our potential, we must find a solution – but we have to find that solution together.
4. Pursue Tourism and Prioritize ROI
As a conservative, I believe in getting a return on our invested tax dollars (ROI) and finding ways to lower our debt. Therefore, my vision begins with using our new developments to attract more tourism dollars, growing our attractions, and coordinating our efforts. Tourism can be a major part of our future. We have the athletic facilities to attract more and better tournaments. We have the meeting facilities to attract more events and entertainment. The old Saline River Bridge is the halfway point of the Southwest Trail, a bike trail connecting Little Rock and Hot Springs. I support the development of the Southwest Trail because it provides a foundation for development around the Saline River Bridge. We also have the Saline River, one of the hidden jewels of the Arkansas outdoors. We have one of the best local Chambers of Commerce in Arkansas with many local events that attract consumers regionally. It’s important to understand that every tourism dollar that we attract at a ball tournament, a convention weekend, a concert, or the use of the outdoors is a tax dollar return on our investment. We have invested this money to attract commerce to our city, and while we are getting a return on that investment, there is so much more that we can do to use outside dollars to help pay off local debt.
5. Invest in Infrastructure
Much of our city’s infrastructure, specifically downtown, is aging and needs to be replaced if we are serious about development. We’ve invested millions of dollars in great facilities that were needed and have helped us revive our economy. As we pay these facility bonds off, we need to shift focus into critical infrastructure improvements and innovative technologies that attract employers. As Mayor, we will develop a Master Street and Services Plan, with projections for ten and twenty years. This will include a comprehensive drainage analysis and efforts to get traffic lights at the Benton Parkway / Alcoa Road intersection and the entrance to Hurricane Lake Estates. We will also sit down with the Benton School District and local area industry to discuss their long-term growth plans and incorporate those needs into our considerations.
6. Reduce Regulations and Encourage Development
As a conservative, I’m opposed to burdensome regulations. Benton is home to some of the nicest neighborhoods in central Arkansas. However, some developers won’t build new neighborhoods here because of local red tape. Additionally, these burdensome regulations discourage developers from renovating existing properties and revitalizing old neighborhoods, like the Ralph Bunche Community and Tyndall Park, which offer affordable housing for families but are in great need for revitalization. As Mayor, I’ll work with members of the City Council to reform our permitting and connection process and stop discouraging developers from wanting to build in Benton. We have to eliminate regulations that discourage business development. Being pro-active to bring housing development back to Benton is a high priority for me, as Mayor.
7. Develop a New Identity for Downtown
Conservative business leaders like me love Main Street developments and Downtown America. Downtowns are representative of our past but for many cities, it is becoming a symbol of their future. That’s what I want for Downtown Benton. I want to revitalize downtown and bring new purpose to one of the best downtowns in Arkansas. In 2017, I led the effort to establish a formal Soccer Club called Benton FC to re-purpose historic C.W. Lewis Stadium into a soccer stadium. FC uses the stadium four nights a week, eight months out of the year. Currently, they are the only soccer club in the state of Arkansas with their own stadium. Additionally, Mayor David Mattingly led an effort to re-establish our Farmer’s Market in a new facility built with private funds. I supported that effort because I believe it’s important to continue to polish the things that have been successful in the past. So how do we re-purpose or re-vitalize downtown? I have a lot of ideas about that but as I’m campaigning, I’m learning that you have ideas also. We need to collaborate with our current merchants and Chamber leaders to establish a comprehensive plan for downtown that THEY will be willing to promote and support.
Executive Experience Matters
Our city budget is a $27 million operation, employing hundreds of people in an effort to provide services for our citizens. The Mayor is the CEO of our city, which makes the election for Mayor of Benton a $27 million hiring decision. Our city needs more than caretakers trying to maintain what we have, needing on-the-job training at the executive level. Our city needs an experienced, conservative business leader that know how to grow businesses, build coalitions of support, and work through complex public policy to find reasonable solutions that protect your tax dollars. My background makes me uniquely qualified to lead this effort because I’ve done it.
I’m the only candidate for Mayor of Benton that has executive level business experience to efficiently manage our $27 million budget and our city personnel.
I’m the only candidate for Mayor of Benton that has legislative experience at the federal, state, and municipal levels and can navigate complicated public policy to benefit the citizens of our community.
I’m the only candidate for Mayor of Benton that has created jobs, met a payroll, understands what employers want and can effectively advocate to corporate executives making strategic business decisions.
I’m the only candidate for Mayor of Benton that has unified our city and led successful public initiatives. Others can talk about bringing people together… but I’ve done it. The Benton Event Center, Riverside Park, our school renovations, and the public safety initiative that funded our school resource officers are proof that I get results.
Conclusion
This is a very ambitious plan to educate our workforce, empower small business growth, address tough issues that challenge our efforts to grow, aggressively increase our return on investment, invest in infrastructure, reduce regulations, and re-purpose aging areas of our city. My 25-year experience in business and politics provides me a wealth of local, state, federal, and business relationships to assist with this ambitious plan. My plan is to use those relationships to benefit citizens of Benton by providing us political strength and position our city as an economic leader in Arkansas.
Both of my opponents are good men who desire good things for our city. Unfortunately, we are at a time in our city that electing someone with good intentions just isn’t enough. We need a conservative, experienced, business leader to lead us forward. Hopefully, this plan illustrates my economic vision for our city and my qualifications to get it done.
Thank you for taking the time to consider my plan. Early voting begins October 22nd and Election Day is November the 6th and I’m humbly asking for your vote. If we work together, we can make this plan a reality and provide a future with more opportunity for our kids.
Feel free to provide feedback at my email address, [email protected].