Keith Markley simultaneously announced his candidacy for the office of Richland County Commissioner and officially resigned from his position as Director of the Emergency Management Agency (EMA) during the county commissioner’s meeting Tuesday morning. Markey served for 10 years as Richland County’s director of Emergency Management.
Markley explained that due to the federal funding of the EMA office, he cannot legally serve as director of EMA and run for commissioner at the same time.
Former fire chief Mike Bailey has been named interim director of EMA for the foreseeable future. Markley will be running against Shelby mayor Marilyn John in the May primary election for the commissioner position soon to be vacated by Ed Olson.
Markley delivered a short speech to commissioners Tim Wert, Gary Utt and Olson, as well as a crowd of his friends and family. He emphasized two main issues he would like to focus on if elected as commissioner – workforce development and emergency preparedness. Markley said workforce development in Richland County would include not just employment in higher numbers, but more specifically in higher positions.
“Now and in the future, it looks like the higher paying jobs are going to be in advanced manufacturing and through the healthcare profession in Richland County,” said Markley. “If we can get people educated and into those kinds of jobs, the entire economic and community growth of Richland County is going to get better, for all of us.”
Markley said he plans on working with local manufacturers and healthcare professionals to assess the needs of the county, and hopefully work with area vocational schools to tailor programs to fit those needs and work through the commissioner’s office to help with funding those programs.
In regards to emergency preparedness, Markley said he plans on using his 27 years of experience as Fire Chief for Madison Township and 10 years of experience serving as Disaster Survivor Assistant with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to prepare Richland County for a wide variety of emergency situations.
“It’s much more than just flooding,” he said. “We have ice storms, we have snowstorms, we have heat events; and in this office working with the current EMA director and with the commissioners, we’ve got to do everything from tornadoes to terrorism. Even if that may be low risk, we’ve still got to be prepared for those things.”
Markley also noted he would like to establish a continuity of operations between the county’s governments, from townships and villages to cities and the commissioner’s office, in order to bounce back quickly from an emergency event.
Commissioners Wert, Utt and Olson each offered support to Markley in his run for commissioner and expressed their thanks for his years of service.
“I would like to personally thank Keith for his service to the people of Richland County, and for his dedication to this office and to keeping people safe,” said Olson.
Markley added that through talking with the current commissioners and learning the issues, he feels he has a firm grasp on the complexities of the office and the depth of a commissioner’s work.
“I think because of that time I’ve spent here with the board, I have a unique understanding of some of the issues in the county and what a commissioner can and can’t do,” he said. “I’ve learned an awful lot of that, and I think that has uniquely prepared me for this kind of position.”
“Now and in the future, it looks like the higher paying jobs are going to be in advanced manufacturing and through the healthcare profession in Richland County,” said candidate Keith Markley.
