By: Kyla Wetmore
On May 5, Collegedale residents will have the opportunity to cast their votes in the primary election for District 10’s new Hamilton County commissioner. Early voting began on April 15 and continues until April 30.
According to the National Association of Counties, a county commissioner attends commission meetings, makes important decisions and builds teams within the commission to get things done. The county commissioner is also expected to stay connected to constituents by listening to their views on decisions, attending community events and conducting meetings to share information.
Two candidates, the incumbent District 10 Commissioner Jeff Eversole and Collegedale’s Vice Mayor Tonya Sadler, are running for the seat.
Sadler’s Platform
According to Sadler’s campaign website, her platform is the following:
The Front Porch Accessibility Act
- YouTube Transparency: “Every committee meeting—where the real deals are made—will be live-streamed and archived on YouTube. No more “off-camera” decision-making.”
- Direct Correspondence: “I write and send my own mail. When you contact me, you get me—not a taxpayer-funded “gatekeeper.”
Infrastructure
- No More Data Centers: “I am 100% Anti-Data Center. They suck up our water and power while providing almost zero local jobs. I will protect our land for better uses.”
- District 10 Splash Pad: “The County has already built amenities in Lookout Valley and Heritage Park. It’s our turn. I will pursue funding for a District 10 splash pad for our families.”
- Roads Over Mileage: “I am not here for a travel budget or mileage reimbursements. Every dollar saved on ‘administrative perks’ will go directly into paving our roads and improving our intersections.”
The Hamilton County Infrastructure Blueprint
1. Implement a Permanent Local “DOGE” (Dept. of Government Efficiency)
We cannot ask for another dime until we stop the bleeding.
- The Goal: A full-scale audit of every county department to identify “administrative fat.”
- The Reality: The Wamp administration’s efficiency task force already identified $3.7 million in immediate annual savings by eliminating frozen positions and giving up county-funded cell phones.
- The Promise: “I will push to double these efforts. Every dollar saved on ‘county perks’ is a dollar that goes into a paving machine.”
2. Tax the Visitors, Not the Victims
Our infrastructure is crumbling because of growth, yet we are placing the burden on long-time homeowners.
- The Plan: Increase the room tax on Hotels, Motels, and STVRs (Airbnb/VRBO) and rental cars.
- The Impact: “Currently, millions in occupancy tax revenue are capped or diverted. I will lobby the State Legislature to allow Hamilton County to capture more of this ‘Tourism Equity’ to fund road maintenance and drainage. If you’re visiting our county and using our roads, you should help fix them.”
3. Smart Growth vs. Bad Development
We are currently reacting to growth instead of planning for it.
- The Policy: “I support a moratorium on ‘Bad Development’—specifically projects that don’t have the sewer capacity or road width to support them.”
- The Stance: “No more’Automatic Approvals.’ If a developer wants to build a high-density subdivision, they need to pay their fair share for the infrastructure upgrades required to support it—not leave the bill for current taxpayers.”
“4. Direct Accountability (The YouTube Standard)
Infrastructure projects often disappear into “Committee Meetings” where the public can’t see the progress.
- The Fix: “I will lobby that all committee meetings regarding public works and infrastructure are live-streamed and archived on YouTube.
- The Result: “You will know exactly which projects are being prioritized, which ones are behind schedule and why.”
5. Prioritize “Essential” over “Extra”
We need to stop chasing “shiny objects” like data centers that drain our grid and provide zero jobs.
- The Focus: “My priority is simple: Roads, Drainage, and Schools.”
- The Action: “While my opponent is calculating his mileage, I’ll be working with the Highway Department to ensure that District 10 isn’t the last in line for reflectors, striping, and paving.”
“Tourism Equity”: Making Visitors Pay Their Share
- The Problem: Short-Term Vacation Rentals (STVRs) and rental cars bring traffic into our communities, but the current tax structure doesn’t return enough to fix them.
- The Fix: “I am calling for an increase in the room tax for STVRs and hotel/motels.”
- The Goal: “Shift the tax burden off homeowners and onto the tourists. If they drive on our roads, they help pave our roads.”
School Board Collaboration
The Annual Joint Summit: “No more being ‘out of sync.’ I will spearhead a yearly joint workshop between the School Board and the County Commission to focus on how we can all work together to serve our next generation best. Priority conversations this year would be teacher pay and re-investments into our special education departments.”
Eversole’s Platform
The following statements are Eversole’s solutions to issues that he plans to address if reelected, according to his campaign website:
Intentional Planning:
As a community, we’ve made significant progress over the past four years in navigating intentional development the right way, and this remains an important role of the Hamilton County Commission. We’ve learned to consider not only the structures on properties but the infrastructure around them. We’ve been updating our plans constantly to effectively address wastewater needs, roads, facilities, new neighborhoods and government services, including police and fire protection.
When planning neighborhoods and their surrounding infrastructure, I’ve proven that I can make decisions that are right for the community. Intentional development means that some projects aren’t right at that moment in time, and over the past four years, I’ve shown that I can be decisive about it. The Hamilton County budget has grown toward a billion dollars during my tenure, and as your commissioner, I’ve risen to that challenge.
I’ve worked successfully with my fellow commissioners to address issues and collaborated with our state and national elected officials and agencies to secure additional state and federal funding. With over four years of experience, I’ve proven that to achieve a successful commission, we must work together to find solutions that benefit everyone. A rising tide lifts all boats.
Schools:
In my role at Walmart, I’m responsible for thousands of associates. In the hiring process, one of the first questions that comes up is always on education. Over my four years as commissioner, I’ve seen firsthand how our schools face overcrowding challenges, and I’ve worked to address the needs of our teachers and students as our community continues to develop. Instead of short-term fixes, I’ve focused on building structures that work in the long run. I’ve fought to increase teacher pay and applied intentional planning with our facilities, especially when it comes to technology. It’s changing rapidly, and I’ve worked to ensure our aging buildings and infrastructure keep pace.
As your commissioner over the past four years, I’ve brought people together, including residents throughout the district, to be strategic about gaining resources and ensuring responsible development of Hamilton County Schools.
Education funding has been one of the most important aspects of my service on the commission over these four years. With your continued support, we can keep building on this progress together. Our kids are our future.
Job Creation:
While vocational training has been removed from most high schools, over the past four years, I’ve worked to increase opportunities for students, starting in middle school. I’ve built strong partnerships with Chattanooga State and the training programs already offered by area manufacturers and other companies.
The state of Tennessee offers a significant amount of tech and vocational training at no cost, and there are currently available jobs. This includes not only manufacturing but also IT, carpentry, engineering, healthcare, criminal justice, culinary arts, logistics and robotics among many others. A student can earn a degree or a certificate in two years for free, graduate with no debt and go right into the workforce earning a substantial wage and great benefits.
For those that choose the more conventional four-year experience, I’ve worked with city, county, state and federal elected officials and organizations in the region to recruit new companies and help existing companies expand. Over my four years as commissioner, I’ve helped create opportunities for graduating students and for underpaid workers.
Public Safety:
Over the last 20 years, I have been an auxiliary officer for the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Department. We’re citizens who volunteer our time performing public safety duties for the community such as traffic control, security at large events and many other activities. I’ve given over 6,000 hours to Hamilton County as a reserve deputy to help support the department. I have ridden many miles throughout the county with other officers. I have seen first-hand the tremendous stress and challenges the law enforcement, firefighters and all the first responders have to face day in and day out. These men and women are true heroes in our community.
As your commissioner over the past four years, I’ve been committed to strengthening the resources and working with our fellow commissioners to give first responders the tools to make our district and neighborhoods safe and secure.
I’ve also worked to evaluate how we can improve fire protection, which is almost entirely volunteer-based in the county. We’ve addressed the challenge of sending people to paid training classes and then losing them to neighboring agencies that can pay them. It impacts the safety of our community when there are medical and fire calls that first responders are struggling to get to. They’re volunteering to put their life on the line and taking on life threatening risks to serve our district and Hamilton County.
Over my four years on the commission, we’ve worked to find ways to pay our officers more so we can be competitive with other counties and other states. We’ve provided incentives for more effective recruiting. I’ve brought people together, including all of you in my district, to create solutions that work for everyone.
