Gainesville political 'pioneer' reflects on her tenure

GAINESVILLE - "Sissy" Lawson, who is leaving office in a few days after 18 years on the Gainesville City Council, says she did not expect to spend nearly 20 years on the council when she was first elected in 1985.

Lawson, in an interview for Sunday's Northeast Georgia This Week on WDUN NEWS TALK 550 (5:30 a.m. and 8:05 a.m. Sunday), said its the "reward" that comes from serving that kept her coming back.

"When you serve and it is so rewarding, it's something you just keep on doing."

What is so rewarding about it?

"To see the progress of our great city, the growth, the very positive things that have happened."

And, Lawson said, the "people" of Gainesville - and its diversified population - are a part of that reward, as well.

Lawson, who is leaving office January 6, says the transformation of downtown is the thing she is most proud of during her tenure. Mayor Lawson says it was a long time coming but, with 48 new businesses and 24 new restaurants since 1994, it was worth the wait. "And, people are shopping downtown, eating, enjoying downtown as a destination."

Lawson says the one unfinished piece of business she hates to walk away from is the revitalization of midtown .

Without hesitation, she says "yes" she did feel like a pioneer when she was elected in 1985 as the first female member of the city council. "People, women, were so excited," she said. "So, I feel like a lot of folks (women) began to think about running for office."

But, she acknowledges that it took some coaxing from a number of people to get her to run that first time, adding when she was first approached about running, she said "no." The man she succeeded on the council, Jim Hartley, who was retiring at the time, was one of the first to encourage her to run, Lawson said.

Lawson says the thing she'll miss most when she leaves the council are the people she's worked with the past 18 years - the city officials and employees. What will she miss the least? Planning and zoning issues.

But Lawson is not closing the door on running for office again sometime in the future. As she's said more than once before announcing in the summer her plans to step down: "Oh, you never say 'never.' No, you never close the door."

Lawson will be succeeded by Ruth Bruner, a former member of the Gainesville Board of Education.

What advice does she have for Bruner?

"Listen to the people, listen to everyone, and be very careful about making decisions," Lawson said. "Listen to everyone, (but) make your own decisions, because you'll get lots of advice, but in the end, you make your own decisions."

What would she like her legacy to be?

"That we have had a great city with economic growth and that we have kept our sense of community."