ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, March 26, 1996 TAG: 9603260071
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SERIES: PROFILES OF THE CANDIDATES
Third of three parts
SOURCE: DAN CASEY STAFF WRITER
MEMO: ***CORRECTION***
Published correction ran on March 27, 1996. The Rev. Nelson Harris
and Jeff Artis are competing to serve the final two years of a City
Council term vacated by former vice mayor John Edwards, but neither can
win the post of vice mayor. That title will go to the top vote-getter
among the six candidates seeking four-year terms. A headline in
Tuesday's paper was incorrect.
On May 7, Roanoke voters will elect five City Council members, the largest block of seats up for election at any time since 1976.
Here is a brief look at Jeff Artis and Nelson Harris, the candidates running in a special election to fill the two years left in the term of former Vice Mayor John Edwards, who was elected to the state Senate last fall.
Jeff Artis
Artis, 39, is probably familiar to city voters because of his unsuccessful 1995 campaign to unseat longtime Del. Vic Thomas, D-Roanoke.
Although the Southeast resident said after that loss that he wouldn't run for council, he changed his mind.
Education is a primary theme in Artis' campaign. He says he'll work for higher teacher pay and greater opportunities for vocational education in city schools, and against "social promotions" for students who haven't mastered minimum standards in their grade levels.
But he's also in favor of cutting taxes and is an outspoken proponent of "charter schools." Neither of those issues got Republicans very far in local General Assembly campaigns last fall.
Artis also is the only candidate who is opposed to a rental inspection program the city is devising for inner-city neighborhoods.
"I've read it, and it's a bad plan," he said at a Raleigh Court debate among candidates. "It's got too many loopholes in it; some of those loopholes are big enough to drive a Mack truck through,"
During a Tuesday debate at High Street Baptist Church, Artis said his tendency toward outspokenness has given him an undeserved reputation as "the angry man of Roanoke."
"I'm not angry. I'm tired. I'm tired of racism. I'm tired of the politics of exclusion instead of the politics of inclusion. I'm tired of the arrogance of Roanoke city government and Roanoke City Council in particular," Artis said to repeated applause.
"I'm tired of our children graduating from our schools not knowing how to read or write. ... I'm tired of our city government wasting our tax dollars on extravagant capital projects like that bridge down there at the Hotel Roanoke. I'm tired of our city government exploiting Gainsboro. I'm tired of our city government forgetting Southeast."
Nelson Harris
A Roanoke native who grew up in Raleigh Court, Harris at 31 is the youngest of the City Council candidates in this election.
Nevertheless, he already has one election under his belt: an unsuccessful 1994 council bid in which he ran fourth in a race for three seats.
In that race, Harris emphasized social concerns such as teen pregnancy and poverty. And he didn't hesitate to criticize the city administration for its ill-fated 1993 attempt to take over Roanoke Gas, or for moving slowly on forming a teen-pregnancy task force.
This time out, Harris is emphasizing strong neighborhoods, economic partnership with surrounding governments, more support for education and the need for council members to be accessible to residents.
He says council should have a liaison with the city government's Neighborhood Partnership. Harris says he also would consider holding informal community meetings with residents to listen to their ideas, suggestions and concerns.
And he's running in part on his School Board record. Harris was appointed by council to the School Board in 1992 and has been chairman since 1994.
"As chairman of the Roanoke School Board for the past two years, I have worked hard ... supporting rigorous academic standards, student support services, and enhancing technology in the classroom," Harris said.
"I have also sought to support the classroom teacher through bringing teacher salaries in Roanoke up to the national average and in maintaining strong, clear disciplinary policies for students."
Standardized test scores for city students have improved in recent years, but still are below state averages and significantly below scores of students in Roanoke and Montgomery counties.
JEFF ARTIS
Republican candidate for City Council
Address: 727 Highland Ave. S.E.
Age: 39
Occupation: Substitute teacher; publisher, Black Conservative Newsletter; church custodian
Political offices held: None
Marital status: Married
Telephone: Home: 342-4526
NELSON HARRIS
Democratic candidate for City Council
Address: 2813 Edgewood St. S.W.
Age: 31
Occupation: Pastor, Ridgewood Baptist Church; chairman, Roanoke School Board
Political offices held: None
Marital status: Married
Telephone: Home: 344-9547; Work: 342-6492
LENGTH: Long : 119 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: (headshots) Artis, Harris. color. KEYWORDS: POLITICS CITY COUNCIL PROFILEby CNB