Ivey reflects: ‘I’m proud of what we did’

Hoover Mayor Gary Ivey may have lost his re-election bid this year, but the 61-year-old city leader said he has no regrets about his 12 years as an elected official.

“I’ve enjoyed serving this city,” Ivey said as he prepares to pass the torch to incoming Mayor Frank Brocato on Nov. 7. “I wish Frank the best in his oncoming term. I’m not bitter about it. Anything I can do to help with the transition, all he’s got to do is call me.”

Ivey, who served seven years on the City Council and five as mayor, said he was disappointed in the turnout for this year’s election, given the city’s population. The U.S. Census Bureau last year estimated Hoover had about 85,000 residents, yet only 13,761 people voted in the mayor’s race.

Ivey said the city election this year “became a schools vs. sports deal, and the sports people didn’t get out” to vote.

He focused his campaign largely on the city’s plans for the $80 million sports complex being built next to Hoover Metropolitan Stadium and the city’s ability to maintain a strong financial position and balanced budgets, but it wasn’t enough, he said.

School supporters wanted a tremendous amount of money for Hoover schools, and he thought other city needs were more important, he said. Schools are an important part of the city, but so is public safety, garbage pickup, streets and sanitation, parks and courts, he said.

“I think you have to fund all of that,” Ivey said.

There’s a tremendous amount of work and money that goes into maintaining a balanced city, and “I’m proud of what we did,” Ivey said. “I’m proud of the way we left the city.”

That said, he wishes the new mayor and City Council success with the projects they want to undertake, he said.

“I’ve known Frank for 30 years,” Ivey said. “I wish Frank the best. I hope he does well with it, and I’m sure he will.”

Best memories

Some of Ivey’s best memories in city government include the development of Veterans Park, construction of the Hoover Senior Center and additions to the Hoover Public Library, he said. He also is proud of the sports field built at Hoover Sports Park East for children and adults with special needs.

“I think that’s incredibly special and badly needed,” he said.

Other accomplishments he regards as significant include the widening of U.S. 31 between Interstate 459 and Data Drive and helping important private-sector projects become a reality. Some of those projects include the renovation of the Riverchase Galleria and the construction of the Field & Stream store in Patton Creek and two freestanding emergency departments, he said.

Allen Pate, who is retiring as the city’s executive director, said each of the five mayors with whom he has worked has been a good mayor in different ways.

Ivey was not as outspoken and in the public eye as much as his predecessor, Tony Petelos, but he has a great business mind, Pate said.

Fans and critics

Tynette Lynch, the CEO of Aldridge Gardens whose husband contributed to Ivey’s campaign, said she thinks Ivey has done an excellent job as mayor.

“He represented the people well,” she said. “I think he represented businesses, small businesses and large businesses, well.”

As the president and CEO of Crest Cadillac, he knows the challenges facing businesses, she said.

Ivey loves the city and wants to continue to see it flourish and grow, Lynch said. “I think he’s been a great leader and a strong leader.”

Others, such as Bluff Park resident Dan Fulton, have been more critical of Ivey.

Fulton said Ivey for too long failed to acknowledge the financial problems facing the Hoover school system.

“That was a top priority for the residents of Hoover,” Fulton said.

But Ivey took no initiative to address the failed plan to eliminate school buses or help with financial issues, he said. “I believe if he had showed more interest in helping schools, the outcome might have been different.”

The Hoover City Council in December passed several measures to increase the city’s contribution to schools by an estimated $1.3 million to $1.5 million a year, but it wasn’t enough to address the problems, Fulton said.

“It just seemed like a drop in the bucket. It didn’t seem sincere,” he said.

Ivey was counting on the new sports complex to get him votes, but Fulton believes it didn’t work because of the way it was pushed through with little public input and public notice.

“I think that’s what really did him in,” Fulton said. The public was irate at the lack of transparency and failure to communicate, he said.

Ivey is convinced he did what was best for the city as a whole but said he accepts the election results and will plug himself back into his car dealership.

“I hope we made a difference up here,” he said. “I feel like we have.”