By Jonathan Copsey / STAFF and John Fredericks / STAFF

Alpharetta’s Post 3 Council candidate Tom Miller officially kicked off his election campaign on Tuesday at the house of a supporter in the Greatwood Glen subdivision of Windward.

Miller is vying for the open seat of Councilman John Monson, who chose not to seek re-election, with Chris Owens, a civil engineer, and John Keim, a retired business executive.

Miller, a strategic analyst with Cox Communications, served as President of the Windward Homeowners’ Association for nine years and was often at the epicenter Alpharetta’s most controversial zoning and development proposals.

Miller rose to citywide prominence with his outspoken opposition to the proposed Windward Mill development, which eventually passed. Most recently, Miller was a vociferous and relentless critic of Alpharetta’s $25 million City Center project. The project crashed and burned in July amidst financial viability concerns and claims of fuzzy math by opponents. 

Tough stands such as this, Miller said, is why he feels most qualified to run for city council.

NO BLANK CHECKS

“I’m not anti-development, but there is a limit… I’m not for any blank checks,” he said. “There is an arrogance on council…We all want growth, but it needs to be quality growth.” He pointed out that with proposals such as the Windward Mill development, the City Council said they would take citizen concerns into consideration when deciding what the final project would look like, but in the end, Miller claimed it passed almost exactly as the developer wished.

While proud of Alpharetta, he sees trouble brewing ahead if bold action is not taken. “Some of the city’s bigger problems, namely traffic infrastructure and development, are [looming],” Miller, stated.

“It used to be you could tell when you passed from Fulton County into Alpharetta,” he said. “That’s not the case any more.” He pointed out that when city officials discuss the public safety department, or parks, they compare it among the best in the country. The same is not true when discussing the roads of the city, Miller maintained.

GLOVES COME OFF 

Seeking to define his opponents, Miller said it was no time to mince words: “I can’t imagine running for [city] council without ever attending a council meeting,” he said, referring to one of his opponents, John Keim.

Keim went further. “To emphasize the absurdity of his charge, is he saying that if you brought your dog or monkey to council meetings they’d be qualified?” he asked. “Does that mean Ronald Reagan couldn’t be an effective member of Alpharetta city council because he couldn’t get to all the meetings?”

Miller painted Chris Owens as being in the back pocket of area developers. “He works hand in hand with developers, having worked on the Prospect Park development project, among others,” Miller charged.

Not true, says Owens. “I’m a civil engineer, not a developer. I don’t negotiate deals. I work on road design, utilities and infrastructure for development projects,” he explained. Owens shared that he has worked for good developers and bad developers. “I know the difference,” he proffered.

“As for being in somebody’s back pocket, my clients are mostly at the state and federal level, those who represent Alpharetta are a very small percentage. If a local project were to surface, I would recuse myself,” Owens promised. “We all are vested in the community and we all have potential for conflict. I would step back, and I expect my colleagues would do the same should they be in a similar situation.

DEBATE COMING

All three candidates will be participating in an Alpharetta Council debate hosted by The Beacon on October 13 at the Metropolitan Club on Windward Parkway. The debate is free and open to the public, and commences at 6:00 p.m. with a cocktail reception honoring the candidates.