STEUBENVILLE — The two men vying for Steubenville’s Second Ward council seat both want the same thing — to make the city a better place to live and work–but it’s how they would hope to accomplish it that separates them.

The Nov. 4 ballot pits incumbent Tracy McManamon, a Republican, against political newcomer Derek Smith, who is running a write-in campaign.

Tracy McManamon

McManamon and his wife left Cleveland 23 years ago to raise his family “in this town and we love it here.”

“I decided to run for re-election because I feel that a lot of progress has taken place in the city, but a great deal more needs to be done to help make Steubenville a better place to live, work and play,” he said. “I’ve brought together many major employers, developers, our Jefferson County commissioners and some very high-level state and federal resources to shine the light on Steubenville and ask for their assistance with the city’s plans and to invest in our community. Some of these conversations are beginning to come to fruition, but much more needs to be done and I plan to continue to drive the focus home on working with my colleagues and our city staff to move Steubenville forward. I see the glass as half full, and I want to leave this place better than when I came onto council. I want my children to stay in Steubenville or come back here and raise their families as I have raised mine here.”

He said the biggest issue facing Steubenville “is the need for more revenue.”

“We have so many needs, especially infrastructure, upgrading our city parks, economic development–which, of course includes restaurants, entertainment and shopping for all ages,” McManamon said. “We obtain more revenue by creating and encouraging more and more economic development, as we have all seen in the past few months with the opening of Chipotle and Starbucks and now the ability to work with our county commissioners to maximize opportunities at the Eastern Gateway Community College roperty. I’m working with developers in the downtown area as well to turn some of these abandoned buildings into usable and functional spaces for retail or restaurants and entertainment. The closing of EGCC and the Market Street Bridge definitely impacted our tax base, yet, through very strong fiscal measures and controls put into place recently, we did not have to make any negative changes to our community or the way we run the city. We are not out of the woods by any stretch of the imagination, but there is more hope now than there was even three-to-six months ago. Growth and economic development is not a one and done thing, it has to be a daily focus. Having a positive outlook, experience and hope for the future is key.”

McManamon said his is only one vote, “but I’ve done my research on many, many issues facing our council and bring sound data and reasoned discussions to the table present to my council colleagues and the community.”

“Of course, we all do not agree on all issues,” he said. “But once true facts and research issues are presented the discussions and decisions come much more effectively and more cohesively. We each have just one vote, but if we review the facts and can effectively state our positions, that one vote may well turn into seven votes. (You may not) win, but what is important is dealing with the truth and the facts.”

McManamon said as councilman, his goal has been to “run our city like a business” by focusing on “sound fiscal management, keeping a keen eye on revenue and expenses, evaluating trends and developing sound, proven strategies.”

“Having employees, meeting payrolls and managing my own businesses has given me the experience to offer these skills to city staff,” he said. “We brought in Aspire, a grant-writing consultant, in my first year on council and the return on that investment is incredible and has generated over $2 million dollars in grants (so far.) Evaluating our investment strategies has yielded returns in excess of $1.75 million in gains to our city’s bottom line. Having strong and trusted relationships with our key employers in town has been important and yielded developments (and we’ve) worked closely with our building department to make Steubenville a much easier place to do business in and with.”

McManamon, who resides at 616 Belleview Blvd., is president and CEO of One Source Benefits and has more than 30 years of experience in the industry. He’s an author and frequent speaker on business matters.

Derek Smith

Smith, 59, said when he first thought about running for public office a year or so ago, he initially had his sights set on the mayor’s office.

“But when I thought about it, I was actually doing it out of spite,” said Smith, a Steubenville native. “After I came to my senses and thought about the whole political process, I thought I might be able to have some type of impact working through council. I figured I’d start (at the) council level, see how that works, and if I still want to see about running for mayor I can do it down the line.”

It’s no secret Smith has had run-ins with the law and actually spent time in a state prison. He currently owns Club 106, a downtown after-hours club with a spotty reputation that’s repeatedly put him in the legal system’s crosshairs, most recently for selling alcohol without a license, yet he’s also known as a nice guy who’s helped make sure kids in need have backpacks for school and has never hesitated to supply police with video footage from inside the club when they needed it to build a case.

He said all that’s “separate from what I’m doing here.”

“I’m not running from it, I think everything is relevant to where it’s led me now,” he said, adding, “The majority of people who know the story already, they sympathize with me.”

Smith said he’d be the peoples’ voice at council.

“Some people don’t get heard around here — I think I have my finger on the pulse of those people, I’d like to bring their voices inside the council room,” he said, adding that the way to do that is “find out what it is the community needs, what they see as things (the city) needs to address. Some people don’t even express those feelings because they don’t think they’ll be heard. People just want politicians to keep it real with them, they don’t want you to try to placate them and make them think you’re working for them when really they’re working for yourself.”

Smith said as a council member he’d only have one vote, “but I’m pretty familiar with most of the guys in that room (now.) Some things are just catchy — if you have a movement going and you can express it to those that need to hear it, I believe things can be accomplished.”

Smith said he’d like to see more city streets improved and overgrown properties addressed.

“There’s a lot of blight around the city,” he added. “If you drive around there’s a lot of overgrowth, bushes and weeds, and in the event the citizens don’t handle it or won’t handle it, we need to do something. That would be one of the things I’d be more inclined to be involved in because what’s it say to someone who drives into our town and sees overgrown lots and everything else? At the very least, we should take care of them.”

A Steubenville native, Smith resides at 1616 Moreland Drive. Smith said what he’d bring to the job is an awareness that, “I’m for the people.”

“It’s not about ‘Derek Smith’ any longer, maybe when I was younger it was. But over the years I’ve realized it’s not about me. And, I’ve been involved in the community for the last 25 years — people come to me for everything and even though I’m not really in a position to help, I do what can. But maybe through City Council I can get things done that people want to see and not just what politicians want to see.”