Sandy Springs mayoral candidates lay out their visions for the city
Residents of Sandy Springs go to the polls Tuesday to make their choice in a four-way mayoral race, the results of which could shift local politics.
Incumbent Rusty Paul is the city’s second mayor in its 20-year history. He was first elected in 2013 and is running for a fourth term.
City Council members Jody Reichel and Andy Bauman say they can add fresh ideas to City Hall, and both are pledging that if they win they’ll serve only two terms.
And business owner Dontaye Carter, who ran against Paul in 2021, says he’d add more diversity to the sprawling suburb.
“Politically Georgia” producer Natalie Mendenhall caught up with all four candidates for Monday’s podcast.
Q: Tell me about your history with Sandy Springs?
Andy Bauman: My wife and I have lived here for 25 years, even before it was officially Sandy Springs.
Dontaye Carter: I came to know Sandy Springs when my wife and I got married. You know, we were renting an apartment out here from 2014 to 2016.
Rusty Paul: We’ve lived here since 1993. I came back from Washington, D.C., having served as an assistant secretary of Housing and Urban Development in the first Bush administration.
Jody Reichel: I got transferred here 30-something years ago, 36 years ago. My kids were born here; they’re 29 years old.
Q: Talk about your work in Sandy Springs politics.
Andy Bauman: It was never on my bingo card to do this. I had this crazy idea to start a farmers market in Sandy Springs.
I started that in 2010. It was my first interaction with our City Council. Then a City Council seat opened up, and I was encouraged and I … decided to run in 2013.
Dontaye Carter: While I have never been an elected official, I have worked in government. I’ve led up an office in government. And so there’s a great understanding of how government works.
Rusty Paul: I had just moved here when (former Sandy Springs Mayor) Eva Galambos called and asked me to get involved in the incorporation process. I worked with Eva for 13 years, and then when I was in the state Senate (I) carried the legislation to incorporate Sandy Springs.
Jody Reichel: I decided I would run for City Council (in 2017), and I went to a few meetings to learn about it. I didn’t know a lot about it, but I knew that it would be better for me to be able to advocate for North Springs High School.
Q: What are your thoughts on term limits?
Andy Bauman: I think these positions need to turn over, and you bring your best to it for a finite number of years.
Rusty Paul: I’ve always said it could be my last term because the voters may change their mind and decide that they don’t want me. They can. They can make that decision. This Nov. 4, I hope they don’t.
Jody Reichel: I think eight years is plenty. All of our surrounding cities have term limits.
Q: If you were to win the November election, what is your vision for the first 100 days of your term?
Andy Bauman: The morning after we’re sworn in, I’m going to convene a meeting either at the Sandy Springs Diner or somewhere on our city’s north end with stakeholders, property owners, developers, community leaders, business owners and HOA leaders. And we’re going to start planting the seeds for the redevelopment that part of our city desperately craves.
Dontaye Carter: We’re going to get these transportation advisory councils going. We’re going to get a housing advisory council. We’re going to ensure that when it comes to these major decisions that are happening in our city, residents are seen, they’re heard and their voices are valued in there.
Rusty Paul: The first 100 days is really just a continuation of my last 100 days. For me, it’s a matter of making sure that the things we’ve got in the pipeline continue to flow and that we bring those to fruition. We’ve got the widening of Hammond Drive with our T-SPLOST, the finishing up of our Johnson Ferry-Mount Vernon-Roswell Road project.
Jody Reichel: I hope to have our own school system. Seventy percent of our taxes go to Fulton County schools, and we’ve already done a study to show where we can do much better. But it’s going to be a process.
About the Author
Natalie Mendenhall is an award-winning producer for the "Politically Georgia" podcast. She also steps in front of the mic, creating compelling segments for the show. Before joining the AJC, the Chicago native worked as a senior producer at Georgia Public Broadcasting.
