Bill Scott is an entrepreneur who has owned his own businesses for 40 years, dealing in international trade and wholesale import and export businesses. He owns rental property in Blairsville, a lodge in Dahlonega and a wedding venue. Now, he hopes to use his experience as a member of the Lumpkin County Board of Commissioners representing District 1.

Asked of the county is headed in the right direction, Scott replied with a firm no.

“If we were, we wouldn’t be losing our employees to surrounding counties,” he said. “They wouldn’t be leaving Lumpkin County. Look at Dawsonville. It’s unbelievable what they’re doing. We need help. We need someone who has the time to work daily to recruit businesses to Lumpkin County.”

Scott said he doesn’t know for sure that he would make a better commissioner than his opponent. “I only know that I have a lot to offer,” he said. “I have a lot of business experience and I know how to deal with people. In my business, I deal with presidents of major companies like Cracker Barrel and TJ Max, buyers, who buy millions of dollars in goods.”

Scott also knows that employee retention and building the right infrastructure to attract businesses are critical to the county’s success. “We spend a lot of money to train county employees then they leave to go somewhere that offers higher pay. I want to keep our first responders at the highest level, our parks at the highest level. We need to take care of our kids because they are our future and we also need to take care of our senior citizens.”