Home builder running for Effingham County chair will 'lean on experience' to run county

When Alex Long looks at each of his eight children, he cannot help but think about the future of Effingham County and what kind of community he wants it to be for them when they grow old.

That is, among other reasons, why Long is running for County Chairman.

Long says he is a homebuilder and owns Lawrence Alexander Homes among other businesses in construction-related industries, but did not elaborate what those businesses are.

“I run several businesses, so I have the ability of looking at budgets, goals and implementing contracts,” said Long. “I would lean on that experience to do the same thing for our county.”

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He stressed that he is not building large subdivisions, but instead, custom-built homes.

“My knowledge and experience in the homebuilding industry will bring a lot of information that I'm able to use and call upon to help make better decisions,” said Long. “Whereas people may not understand some of the loopholes that developers are using to get away with some of these subpar developments, I will draw on that experience and that knowledge to close those loopholes and push for better quality and a better overall product for our community. There are some subpar developments in this county. Let's not kid ourselves. We can do better and I will enforce that we do better.”

Rincon Elementary Principal Paige Dickey said she trusts Long because of his aptitude to push forward no matter what. "One thing I know about Alex is that he finishes everything he starts. He is not the type of person to quit. I also think with him being a home builder, he understands how to plan for and handle the growth in our county."

Candidate says that Effingham needs a plan for growth

On his campaign page, Long said he does not want Effingham County to become “an extension of the Port Wentworth warehouse district.”

When asked how he could control warehouse growth since the chairman cannot vote unless there is a tie, Long said, “You are able to set the tone for the meetings, you're able to ask the questions ― the pertinent information to bring light to your concerns for what is being voted on. As chairman, you can ask the tough questions to the developer and if we don't like the answers we're getting, we can put stipulations on approvals or denials.”

Transportation is one of the biggest topics in the county. As more and more roads become congested, Long looks to remedy those issues by putting “the full weight of my office behind resolving those areas” that need improvement.

On his campaign page, Long said he would encourage developers to focus on areas where “we have better infrastructure in place.”

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Long also said if he felt like there was a candidate who “checked all the boxes,” he wouldn’t be running for the position.

“I did not feel there was a candidate [who] represented the needs and passion I have for this county in the same level,” said Long. “I am not okay with sitting back and doing nothing when I have that ability to implement the kind of changes that I think most of our residents want to see.”

When asked what kind of changes he thinks residents want to see, Long said, “I think this free-for-all rezoning with this explosive growth ― [the residents] want to see a plan. They want to see that someone has an idea or a plan for the growth.”

Latrice Williams is a general assignment reporter covering Bryan and Effingham County. She can be reached at lwilliams6@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Homebuilder Alex Long is running for chairman of Effingham County