At the August Fannin County Democratic Women’s meeting, Fannin County Board of Commissioners Chairman-Elect Stan Helton talked about his plans for Fannin County and the Board of Commissioners when he takes office January 2, 2017.

Mr. Helton is not waiting around to see how Fannin County works, he is learning it from the ground up.  If I am going to be a leader for approximately 200 Fannin employees, I need to get in with the employees said Mr. Helton.  By the time of the meeting, Mr. Helton had already worked one day with the Road Department picking up litter and digging ditches.  He spent time at the Recreation Department on chewing gum removal detail and restroom clean up.  Mr. Helton said that working in the “non-glamourous” jobs at the different departments lets him find out little details, like how a broken restroom door causes the air conditioning bill to be higher than it should.  Working with the Fannin County employees in each department offers even greater insight. “By going to the different departments, I build camaraderie with employees. They give me some tough questions.  It helps me evaluate what to do as they go forward,” said Mr. Helton.  “You [Fannin citizens] are much better off when I go into office and know the small details of departments.”

Not only is he finding out the responsibilities of each department, Mr. Helton is also learning about where the money in each department goes and how small details contribute to over-expenditure of funds. “The Board of Commissioners is responsible for Fannin’s finances.  Every penny needs to be accounted for… This is my top priority,” said Mr. Helton. The audit noted 13 significant material deficiencies that could allow fraud or money mismanagement to occur.

Another item at the top of his agenda is improving communication and camaraderie among the Board of Commissioners which has been suffering from in-fighting over the past years.  “Citizens want a spirit of cooperation on the Commission,” said Mr. Helton.  “Amen!” replied an audience member. To prepare for this, Mr. Helton has been visiting Board of Commissioners meetings in surrounding counties and attending the Fannin Board of Commissioners meetings.  In fact, FetchYourNews sighted Mr. Helton at the Gilmer Board of Commissioners meetings.

Mr. Helton also wants to build communication between the Board of Commissioners and Fannin residents.  Mr. Helton said that he would continue with Chairman Simonds practice of being readily available to talk to people at his office.  When asked about how open his work schedule would be for speaking to Fannin residents, Mr. Helton’s reply was “I don’t think you need to conform to me.  I need to conform to you.”

Mr. Helton said that he and current Commission Chairman Bill Simonds have already been working together to ensure a smooth transition from Mr. Simonds’ tenure to Mr. Helton’s.  Mr. Helton said that he has a great respect for Mr. Simonds and apologized for any hurt feeling that may have come up during the campaign.  Mr. Simonds has also told FetchYourNews that the two are working together well during the transition period.

After his presentation, Fannin County Democratic Women members had a chance to ask him questions about his plans for the county.

One line of questioning was about services for the growing number of seniors in the county.  Mr. Helton stated that the senior population was the fastest growing population group in Fannin County and that the county needs programs that encourages a healthy lifestyle for seniors.  Then, members pushed him on the idea of building a swimming pool at the Recreation Complex since swimming is one of the best exercises for seniors.  Mr. Helton replied that the expense of building a swimming pool versus the return on investment for building a swimming pool is something that Fannin County cannot afford at this time.  He continued, though, that the Recreation Complex is a great resource for Fannin County because of what it provides for the residents and the money that the Recreation Complex generates for the county through hosting tournaments.  People come in for tournaments and spend money on rentals and food said Mr. Helton.

Two members questioned County Attorney Lynn Doss’ power and compensation.  Mr. Helton said that Ms. Doss is neither the attorney for MCaysville nor Blue Ridge.  He did not comment on compensation.

Several members voiced concerns about TVA spraying Roundup right next to the Toccoa River and GDOT using Roundup on embankments to avoid the cost of mowing.  Besides stunting plant growth, Roundup is highly toxic for amphibians and potentially causes cancer in humans.  Mr. Helton said that TVA has layers of environmental protection.  To get TVA to change spraying would mean that TVA has to agree that the herbicide does call problems.  Another member told Mr. Helton that he is the one who can bring TVA’s attention to the spraying.

Another member asked him about rumors of financial mishandling in the Recreation Department, Road Department, SPLOST expenditures and compensation of the county attorney.  Mr. Helton said that some things are being investigated right now and all the things under investigation relate to money.  “I’m concerned that every tax dollar coming into the county is spent appropriately,” said Mr. Helton.

During his presentation, Mr. Helton also spoke about his campaign and his family.

Click here to read Mr. Helton’s Campaign Finance Report

Mr. Helton said that his stage of life right now has let him run a campaign free of influence.  First, he doesn’t have a business that could be affected by his decisions as Commission Chairman. Secondly, he financed his campaign completely on his own and did not receive any in-kind donations.  He invited the audience to review his campaign finance records on file with the Fannin County Board of Elections.  (Click here to view Mr. Helton’s campaign finance records).

 Before running for office, Mr. Helton held several public service positions.  He was on the Northwest Georgia Regional Commission, the Ducktown Basin Museum Board of Directors and, most recently served as Chairman of the Fannin County Water Authority.  Mr. Helton’s has a 34-year career in oil industry management.  After retiring, Mr. Helton returned to Fannin County in 2012. Mr. Helton and his wife, Heather, live in McCaysville. Ms. Helton is the Business Manager for the Mineral Springs Center, Inc., a non-profit cooperation which serves developmentally disabled individuals.  They have two children and six grandchildren.

This article has been updated to correctly reflect Ms. Helton’s position and place of work.