Smith, who is retired, answered the following questions for rrspin.com:

Why are you running?

I am a life-time resident of Roanoke Rapids. I am interested in city government and have been attending city council meetings for many years. I try to keep current on the issues facing the city.

What are the issues that are most important to you to help the citizens of Roanoke Rapids?

The most important issue for Roanoke Rapids is to attract business and industry so that our citizens will have jobs. We need to improve the uptown and downtown business areas and also clean up the sections of the city that are in poor condition.

What is the best way to solve the issue of the theater, be it through refinancing or some other means?

The theater has been a thorn in Roanoke Rapids for years. Long term is to refinance until it is sold. City Council has done a good job in the last two years to take some of the burden off the citizens; however, until it is sold, we are faced with the debt.

How do we effectively market the WestPoint plant and what do you see as its best use?

The City Council needs to work with the Halifax County Commissioners and Ms. Cathy Scott, director of the Halifax County Development Commission, to develop a plan to entice prospective buyers for the facility and land.

By working together and sharing ideas, more can be accomplished. We have a lot of infrastructure in place so it could be used by a large industry.

How do you feel council should best work with the Main Street program and what do we do to improve the city's overall economy?

The Roanoke Rapids City Council should have a work session with the Main Street board every quarter to discuss exactly what is being done and what needs to be done. The City Council should consider hiring a director or funding RABA for a director. We have to work hard to get the Main Street program up to par. We need to make the business area attractive for new investors.

Roanoke Rapids is the hub of Halifax County. We need to take pride in our city and keep it clean. We need to continually work on improving uptown, renovating the apartments over the businesses and getting more modern rental properties.

There was a plaque (anonymous) that said:

"Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina:

I like living in our little town

where the trees meet across

each street. Good People live in our

little town, the kind of folks you like

to meet. For life is interwoven

with friends we've come to know

and we hear their joys and sorrows as we daily come and go.

I love living in Roanoke Rapids,

I care no more to roam, for every

house here is our little town is

more than a house, it's a Home."