Brian Burgess Running for Mayor

Resident Brian Burgess pulled his petitions at the Summit County Board of Elections Feb. 28 to run for Stow mayor, but said his campaign already started about six months ago.

"I've already reached about 1,100 homes," said Burgess, 37. "Being a family person who has lived in Stow for 13 years, I think there are a lot of changes that need to be done fiscally. The keystone of my campaign is, 'the status quo has got to go.'"

Mayor Karen Fritschel will be leaving office at the end of 2011 and will not seek re-election because of term limits. The deadline to file to be a candidate is June 15.

If elected, the first change Burgess said he would like to make is to the mayor's salary. Although City Council is discussing to , Burgess said he would cut the salary by an additional 25 percent. The mayor currently makes $90,215 annually, according to Finance Director John Baranek.

"That would equal about 18,000 to 20,000 in savings," he said, adding the money could be used to offer incentives to administrative department heads to come in under budget every quarter.

"I would like to run things efficiently. Having business entrepreneurial experience gives me the best chance to balance our budget," said Burgess, who is the owner of Auto Beauty Care in .

Burgess has never run for an elected office, but said his outside look into the local political world is an advantage.

"I’m a non-politician and this city needs an outside look," he said. "I'm doing something people say you can’t do – running without the experience of being on council. But, that's the whole basis of my campaign ... you don’t have to be the status quo."

Burgess said he thinks the biggest problem facing the city is economic development. 

If elected, he would want to offer businesses a tax incentive or tax abatement "for a limited time."

"My main focus is going to be on job creation," he said, adding bringing new businesses in would increase the city's income tax revenue.

Burgess said he is not in favor of raising taxes or cutting staff and services if elected.

"I will never, ever support any tax increase," he said.

Brian Burgess is the owner of  in Kent. He has a bachelor's degree in business from Southern Ohio College and an associate's degree in accounting. Burgess and his wife, Angela, have lived in Stow for 13 years and have two children.

For more information, visit his campaign website.

For more election coverage, keep checking back with Stow Patch.