Columbia Star: The Winds of Change

February 11, 2021 | By Josh Cruse

Councilman Sam Davis announced over two weeks ago he was not going to run for re-election after his current term ends at the end of the year. At the time his announcement served as a notice that District One would be getting new representation. However, it became a preamble for a seismic shift in the makeup of Columbia City Council.

Eight days later on Thursday, February 4, Mayor Steve Benjamin announced he would not be running for a fourth term as mayor. That sent shockwaves throughout council.

Hours later, District Four councilman Daniel Rickenmann threw his hat in the ring to replace Benjamin. The next day, At- Large representative Tameika Isaac Devine joined him. And on Monday, February 8, former Benjamin aid Sam Johnson announced he would be the third candidate to challenge for the mayor’s seat.

While it is still early in the election cycle the filing deadline isn’t until August it is never too early to meet the candidates.

Tameika Isaac Devine

Devine has served as one of city council’s two at-large representatives since 2002.

She feels her time as an at-large representative can be an asset during the campaign. Devine says she knows the pulse of what is happening in the city.

She said it has long been her desire to run for mayor, even considering a run in 2009. However, at the time Mayor Bob Coble talked about running for one last term. When he decided against it, Benjamin announced he would run to replace Coble. She did not want to run against Benjamin because he is a close friend.

“The timing of this run is all about him (Benjamin) not running,” Devine said. “If he were running again, I would not have.”

One of Devine’s primary focuses is on the pandemic. While a lot of focus has been on the recovery, Devine believes the pandemic has provided an opportunity to dig deeper and work on some past problems as well as help some community based organizations.

Devine announced her candidacy for the mayor’s office virtually on her Youtube page and talked about expanding tools for law enforcement and providing sustainable opportunities for people in the work force.

While her time as an at-large representative has allowed her to form relationships with people all around the city and bring to light important issues like domestic violence and healthy lifestyles, Devine believes the platform, resources, and connections that come with being mayor can allow her to help the city even more.

Devine said what will be important during this campaign season will be the differences in how the candidates view the issues.

Her approach to her campaign began with her launch of her website, Devine listens. She said it will allow her to meet with different groups virtually and listen to their concerns, ideas, and vision for the city. She is hoping the website will allow constituents to voice concerns and ideas they might not otherwise notify her about.

Daniel Rickenmann

Rickenmann is also a veteran on Columbia City Council, having served as an at-large representative from 2004-2012. Prior to the 2012 election, Rickenmann announced he would not seek a third term, instead turning his focus on running his business.

He returned to city council in 2017 after defeating Jessica Lathren in a special election for the District 4 seat, following the passing of Councilwoman Leona Plough in 2016.

Now he has his sights set on the top seat of city council.

“For me the timing was right,” Rickenmann said. “I was considering if I was going to run for reelection, and I felt if I was going to run again, I would run for mayor so I could have an opportunity to have a greater sphere of influence in trying to move the city forward in some different directions.”

Rickenmann said his decision to ultimately run for mayor was not influenced by Benjamin’s announcement, however, he was originally planning to make his own announcement later in the year.

Rickenmann wants to address a number of issues that face small businesses and growth in Columbia.

“I want to remove the hurdles and things facing all entrepeneurs,” Rickenmann said. “I want to ensure equitable opportunities for every citizen to create their own destiny.”

He says there is an economic tax study showing a road map and a way for council to level the playing field for small businesses. The study also shows the impact taxes and additional fees have on the businesses.

He is also concerned about clean, safe neighborhoods and affordable housing, but Rickenmann says the city needs to take care of the existing housing stock.

Rickenmann enters the race knowing what it takes to represent a specific district and the entire city. He feels those positions have helped keep him very informed and involved throughout the city. He understands the logjams of government and how to prevent them from being issues going forward.

However, he sees his greatest advantage as being a small business owner. Rickenmann said going through the permitting process, worrying about making payroll, and understanding the trials and tribulations of the hospitality industry have given him incredible insight. He feels it also separates him in a race of candidates with similar backgrounds as it relates to city council experience.

The campaign trail will be a little different for him. While he still plans on going door-to-door and meeting people, he says he will do so from a safe distance. He also expects to make more phone calls than in previous campaigns.

Sam Johnson

The final candidate to announce so far is Sam Johnson, a former aid to Benjamin. Johnson announced his intentions at a press conference Monday, February 8.

He started the conference out by thanking Mayor Benjamin, not just for his leadership but his impact as a mentor.

Johnson comes into the race with experience and an understanding of what day-to-day life is in the mayor’s office.

However, unlike his opponents, he doesn’t have any experience on city council.

That doesn’t appear to phase Johnson, as he laid out his focus during the upcoming campaign.

“I thought a lot about what is going on in Columbia right now with the pandemic and the other issues we are facing,” Johnson said. “If Benjamin, who has been a transformational leader, is not going to be the mayor going into 2022, then I want to try. I want to make sure Columbia has the best leadership, the best person for the job.”

Along with dealing with the pandemic’s impact on the city, Johnson wants to focus on affordable housing, small businesses, food deserts, and public safety.

While he may not have experience on council, Johnson does bring experience in working on the policies and the challenges facing Columbia. Similar to Rickenmann and Devine, Johnson’s approach to the campaign trail will be different. He wants to continue to have conversations with the residents of Columbia and knock on doors, however, he wants those conversations to happen from a safe distance.

Benjamin’s Legacy

For 12 years, Benjamin has seen a city go from economic uncertainty and lack of development, to one with a revitalized Main Street, a new development known as BullStreet Commons, a track record of excellent financial reporting, and a major investment in fixing the water, sewer, and stormwater infrastructure improvements.

Benjamin’s other accomplishments include returning professional baseball to Columbia, increasing the police department funding by 75 percent, and leading Columbia to become the first city in the nation to ban the attachment of bump stocks and trigger cranks to firearms in the city are some of his proudest accomplishments.

Benjamin also led the city through the 1,000 year flood in 2015.

In recent years, Benjamin has expanded his profile nationally. Benjamin served as the 2018- 2019 president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors and as chairman for Municipal Bonds for America, president of the African-American Mayors Association from 2015-2016, vice president of the Global Parliament of Mayors in 2019, a member of the Federal Communications Commission’s Intergovernmental Advisory Committee, a member of the Accelerator for America Advisory Council, and co-chair of the Mayors for 100 percent Clean Energy campaign.

This past year was among the most challenging of the Benjamin era. It began with the COVID-19 pandemic, which brought with it a financial crisis. Then beginning in May, there were protests over racial injustice.

“I learned we are our best in times of crisis,” Benjamin said. “ When people come together to try to conquer a common enemy or try to achieve a common goal that’s when you normally find the very best in people. I saw that in 2020.”

Benjamin said while city staff is still figuring out the full impact the pandemic had on Columbia, he feels it provided an opportunity for the city to self examine some of the challenges it faces now and for the future, primarily in healthcare.

There were areas the city knows were impacted by the pandemic, including slowing down the renovation of Finlay Park and forcing the city to take a $20 million hit in its general fund. However, the city had refilled its reserves in the years prior to the pandemic, so services were not cut significantly.

While 2020 presented a multitude of challenges, Benjamin feels he was prepared to guide the city through it based on the experiences and challenges of previous years, like 2015. Along with the flood, the Confederate flag was removed from the State House grounds and Forest Acres police officer Greg Alia was killed.

“2015 was a year of incredible challenges and change, but it definitely served as a road map for how to navigate 2020,” Benjamin said.

Now as Benjamin and city council focus on what 2021 will look like, there are many issues the mayor would like to address in his final year in office, including response and recovery efforts from the pandemic, economic recovery, equity inclusion, and the future of jobs.

As his tenure as mayor draws to a close later this year, Benjamin hopes his legacy will be of fulfilling the original vision of One Columbia, bringing people together. He wants the focus also to be on the fiscal success the city had while he was mayor, including never having to increase taxes, and often times reducing them.

Benjamin’s decision to not run for re-election is also impactful due to the amount of turnover it will cause on city council.

Devine and Rickenmann’s seats were already up for re-election during the 2021 cycle, but with both announcing their intentions to run for mayor, both seats are guaranteed to have new representation in 2022. Davis’s announcement not to run for re-election leaves a third council district which will have a new representative.

If neither Rickenmann or Devine win the mayoral race, four council seats could see turnover in 2022, over half of the council.

It is a drastic change from the last city election, when the only seat to change was in District 3. The last mayoral election, in 2017, saw Benjamin run unopposed.

The City of Columbia is definitely feeling the winds of change.

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