By Donnya Rosier

October 14, 2015, Romance Theatre on Main Street in Rexburg

At noon, candidates Mann and Merrill competed at a chance to become the next Mayor of Rexburg. Active citizens of the city gathered to hear what these candidates had in store for this city, and both definitely exceeded our expectations. Jerry Merrill who has been serving in the community for 35 years vowed to bring new business developments in the city. Ranging from new restaurants to shopping districts, he wants to make it his priority to meet the people’s needs. He also wants to collaborate with Brigham Young University and businesses to create new jobs and businesses within Rexburg. With upcoming projects and working with partners, he hopes to save the taxpayer money.

Mann on the other hand also vowed to produce an economic growth through more retail stores and jobs for the youth of this city. He would like to start new businesses and ideas with future BYU-Idaho alumni to help Rexburg prosper in the near future. He stressed that students leave the town after graduating, helping other cities grow. He wants to see Rexburg progress with the ideas of young students in this area who too strive to see Rexburg successful. Through new parking spaces within complexes and more green space, Mann envisions Rexburg as a beautiful place to stop and stay, rather than just a pit stop. A government that is close and honest to its citizens is what Mann wants for Rexburg, he also stresses to have decisions be more transparent. He also values the importance of our historic buildings, and wants to start Snow removals for the upcoming Winter.

The citizens of Rexburg were asked to post some questions for the candidates, unfortunately, there was no time left to get to the questions that our committee wanted to address but both candidates wanted to have apartment growth in the community. Mann rooted to have more complexes out in the community instead of making BYUI a dense and populated area to travel through. Merrill on the other hand wants to build more complexes around the campus to create a walking and biking environment for the students.

To end the debate, both were asked about their strength and weaknesses, Merrill described himself as a loving man who cares for the community. He also understands the community and listens to their needs. The only weakness he has is he cares too much, and he doesn’t ‘stay in his lane’ when needed. Mann expressed how much energy he has towards every task he has. He places his all and he is an amazing listener. He preaches that he does not tell the public what ‘they want to hear’, he genuinely wants to see Rexburg progress as a competing city in Idaho. As for his weakness, we would have to ask his wife!