Phil Yerington was mayor of the city of Davenport from 1998-2002, with that learning experience he decided to run for mayor again this year.
“The first thing we’re going to do is enhance our public safety. Whoever the new [police] chief in Davenport is has to commit to more men on the street,” Yerington said.
He has a plan on approaching St. Ambrose University and Genesis Health Care System since they are the largest two not for profit tax exempt agencies in Davenport, to see if they would forego a rainwater fee in favor of a public safety fee.
“Second, we have to go out and actively pursue companies to bring jobs here and no, not $8, $9 an hour jobs, but living wage jobs,” he said.
However, Yerington said this may not be approachable with the circus mentality going in city hall.Yerington was born and raised in Davenport and started out as a member of the Davenport city police in 1974 retiring as a police lieutenant. He is most remembered for working with the gang unit the city of Davenport had.
“As mayor, I can talk about the early signs of gang involvement and maybe up the educational level up a bit,” he said.As for the immigration issues, Yerington has grown a little tired of the debate. The city of Davenport passed a law about three years ago saying that a police officer could not ask one’s immigration status.
“I don’t think we can solve many crimes by asking immigration status.”In the past the candidate had been known for his opinion on just about every issue. Yerington said he is the “Jesse Ventura” governor type of candidate in which he’s going to tell you what’s on his mind and he’s going to tell you the truth.
At the city level, the people seem to forget that this is where your voice is the loudest by attending meetings and having your voice be heard.His favorite movies are Armageddon, space movies and The Pirates of the Caribbean Series. Yerington’s favorite books are the Bible and Christian material.“That’s where people will see the biggest change in me, it takes that fiery temper away, makes you a little bit more forgiving.”
He’s a fan of the New York Yankees. He has a daughter, 25, who’s finishing up her second year of nursing at Genesis E.R. He also has a son, 20 who’s an avid golfer.
“I enjoy my kids; enjoy spending as much time whenever I can with them and those are the things you are blessed with, whether you win or not.”As for the Latino community, Yerington credits LULAC and Vic Saldivar for getting a hold of the community. “They’re in our town, I have to know what they’re saying in order to know what’s important to them and we’ll just try to do the same thing, this time,” he said.
The election is on Tuesday, Oct. 9 with three candidates running for mayor. On Tuesday, Nov. 6 the top two vote getters will face off in the general election. If you are not registered to vote in Davenport, you can go to www.pyerington.com or http://www.scottcountyiowa.com/auditor/vtrapplication.php for a registration form.