It’s sunny and 78 degrees in Alto, Georgia but Abel Ramirez is listening to a discussion about snow plows. As the Town Council’s newest member, he is just listening as his fellow officials talk about the spreaders, spray-in liners, and other attachments that might come with the truck if the town decides to buy.
Ramirez was appointed to and sworn in as Alto Town Council Post 2 with little discussion at Tuesday’s meeting. The husband and father of 3 girls moved here in 1996 from Pennsylvania. He works full-time at Mt. Vernon Mills and runs his own business, “Party Time Tables and Chairs for Rent,” on the Gainesville Highway.
With all that going and a family to care for, I had to know what prompted him to add Town Council to his already full plate “This town helped me when I came here and in return I want to help them back,” he says.
Local government is often described by those involved as a thankless job. In Alto, Ramirez’s new job is one nobody wanted. Post 2 sat vacant for almost a year after former council member Loretta “Jacki” Bosco moved from Alto to Baldwin last spring. “We didn’t have anyone sign up for the special election,” explains Mayor Audrey Turner. Council couldn’t appoint a successor until now due to the rules in the town charter and Ramirez was the only person to show any interest in the job. “I’ve known Audrey for 20 years,” he says, “she thought I would be a good choice.”
Ramirez says his goals are simple, “I just want to help the town do things better and to grow.”
At this first meeting, that means just listening as he gets a feel for his new role and learns all about detachable snow plows. Alto leaders say they’re planning for the future after this winter’s frozen precipitation left a few of the town’s roads icy and all but impassable. Unfortunately, the truck’s $40,000+ price tag is too much for their general fund to handle so Ramirez’s first vote is to table the discussion until they can come up with a way to pay for the plow.
His appointment on council will expire at the end of this year. He’ll have just a few months to decide if he wants to run for election in November to keep the seat. “He’ll have time to get his feet wet,” says Mayor Turner, “he can find out if he wants to be a politician.”
