This is the second in a series of candidate question and answer features St. Tammany News will run before the upcoming elections. Each candidate was asked a series of the same five questions.

Rickey Hursey, 47, has lived in Slidell for 35 years. During that time, he has been a business owner, a deputy with the St. Tammany Sheriff’s Office and an air conditioning and heating technician.

Currently, Hursey serves on the Slidell City Council as the representative of District B, in the southern part of Slidell. He was elected to the post in 2004, and during his tenure has served as vice-president and president of the council. He has been married to Lori Calamari Hursey for 25 years, and they have seven children. He is a Republican and belongs to Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church. He has been a coach with the Slidell Youth Basketball Association for the past five years and is a volunteer instruction with the State Wildlife and Fisheries Hunter Education Program.

RICKEY HURSEY

Hursey graduated from Holy Redeemer High School in 1980 and attended Southeastern Louisiana University.

What do you see as the biggest problem facing Slidell, and how would you try and solve that problem? I think one of the biggest problems facing Slidell is the reduction in sales tax income due to the downturn of the economy. I would address it by reducing spending and budgeting wisely.

Besides the proposed levee in south Slidell, what more can be done to protect Slidell from future hurricanes and floods? The completion of the 60-year flood plan, which would tie that levee in with levees at the Schneider Canal, Lakeshore, Fox Hollow and Kingspoint is a very worthwhile project for extra flood protection.

It’s a feasible project which would not require billions of dollars as the hundred -year flood project would.

However, we will need funding from Congress and cooperation of the Army Corp of Engineers.

Without raising taxes, what can be done to increase revenue to pay for city services? We need to complete good projects such as the Summit Development and UNO Tech Park, as well as work with the Economic Development Foundation in St. Tammany Parish to attract investors.

Where do you think there is waste in city government, and what can be done about it? One of the things I would look into is the total number of vehicles owned or leased by the city. Overall in the current economy, government needs to focus on operating more efficiently.

How do you plan to attract more businesses and jobs to Slidell? The permitting process can be made user-friendly for all businesses, small and large. We could also make any businesses that are interested in moving to the Slidell area aware that St. Tammany Parish has an excellent reputation in the area of education.

In addition, we will continue to provide essential services such as flood protection, drainage, and street improvements in order to maintain an attractive quality of life.