Lime Creek resident Casey Morris running for Chelsea Council Place 5

Lime Creek resident Casey Morris is running for Chelsea City Council Place 5.

Morris, who manages Ground Up Coffee and Smoothies in Snider’s Pharmacy, said he plans to focus on continuing the growth he has seen in Chelsea over the past 29 years.

“As a business owner, I’ve always been active in city stuff, whether it be the chamber or Kiwanis club,” Morris said. “I have a desire to continue the growth of the city of Chelsea. It is on track to be a great city.”

Morris was born in Chelsea and while he lived outside of the city for a bit, his family paid so that he could continue to attend Chelsea’s schools.

“I’ve not always been a Chelsea resident, but I’ve always been a Chelsea Hornet,” he said.

Morris and his wife, Rachel Morris, have two children, and Morris said they plan to raise their 2-year-old Alyssa and their newborn Connor in Chelsea. He said he wants Chelsea to continue to be a family-friendly city, where residents are close to amenities and they see continued growth.

“I want to be able to attract new development,” Morris said. “I’ve been laying some groundwork, kind of partnering with people, with the community, trying to already have some ideas of how we can attract businesses when elected, or if I’m elected.”

The Chelsea community is conducive to business growth, Morris said, because people are focused on supporting local shops and restaurants.

“There’s lots of businesses in the area that have been here for a long time, and I want to attract new businesses to come to the area to see the loyalty that the citizens of Chelsea have to their businesses,” Morris said. “You don’t have businesses that stay open 25 years because of happenstance. The citizens of Chelsea are very diligent in shopping Chelsea.”

The community center, new parks and recreation areas and other amenities rely on revenue to grow and develop, and Morris said sales tax is the best way to do that. The city’s 9 percent sales tax is attractive to businesses and community members, and Morris said he thinks it should remain at that left.

“I don’t want to raise the sales tax,” he said. “I think property-wise, there’s no reason to raise an ad valorem tax. I think retail development and rooftops are key issues on how to raise revenue.”

Morris serves on the Chelsea Planning Commission and is vice chair for the South Shelby Chamber, where he previously served as chair of development. He is also a member of Chelsea Kiwanis Club and a life group leader at Liberty Baptist Church.

His involvement around the community means he attends most events that take place in Chelsea, and Morris said he hopes community members will strike up a conversation with him as he is campaigning.

“As a candidate, I want the community to know I’m open for conversations,” he said. “I would like for people to know you can find me on my Facebook page; you can come by the coffee shop and ask me questions. I want to hear the ideas and wants of the city, and I want to share my ideas with them so that they know who they would be voting for.”

For more information, see Elect Casey Morris to Chelsea Council Place 5 on Facebook.

Tom Holcombe and Elizabeth Cooley are also running for Chelsea City Council Place 5.

The election for Chelsea mayor and five city council seats is scheduled for Aug. 23.

If you are running for city council or mayor in Chelsea, you can reach our community reporter Erica Techo at erica@starnespublishing.com.