Alan Erwin will take office as the new mayor of Crawford on January 1, after running unopposed to replace outgoing Mayor Seavy O'Neal.
When current Crawford Mayor Seavy O’Neal announced he wouldn’t run for office again after serving for seven years, Alan Erwin told his wife he was ready for the challenge.
Crawford City clerk Amy Wall-Lance later called Erwin, who ran unopposed, to let him know “he was in.”
“You ready?” she asked.
He was. And he is.
Erwin, who will take office on Jan. 1, is about as local as they come.
Raised just a mile outside of downtown Crawford, he has watched the city shift and grow over the last 30 years.
“I’ve always been around,” Erwin said.
As the beginning of his term approaches, Erwin said the city’s outdated water system is one of his top priorities.
“We’re doing a lot of renovations — getting it up to where it needs to be running, keeping it strong, keeping the cost down as much as we can,” Erwin said.
Renovations have already been approved, and Erwin expects the project to be completed during his first two-year term.
Erwin wants to visit with anybody and everybody to discuss solutions and opportunities for other challenges or visions.
“(I want to) let the citizens of Crawford know that it’s still their city,” he said. “It doesn’t belong to anyone else — the mayor, the council — it belongs to the citizens of Crawford.”
Erwin works as a sales manager for B&M Pallet Company and previously worked for McLane Company, Inc., a grocery distributor.
While this will be his first experience in local politics, Erwin hopes his career in management will help craft his legacy in public service.
“You have to be fair with all citizens, no matter how much money you have, where you came from, where you live, which part of the city you live in,” Erwin said.
As new families and businesses pop up in the city of just under 1,000 residents, Erwin hopes Crawford will continue to “grow in a positive manner.”
“Show up to the council meetings,” Erwin urged residents, new and old. “Every second Tuesday of the month. (It’s an) opportunity for more people to express their visions and help succeed in taking those visions and running with them, helping us grow.”
If you take a glance at Erwin, you’d notice he’s just like the rest of us.
He loves the Georgia Bulldogs, throwing the ball for his three rescue pitbulls and going to church on Sunday mornings with his wife and adult children.
He volunteers with the recreational department, plays co-ed softball and admires Kirby Smart’s leadership style.
But one thing in particular makes him stand out: his devotion to the city and its residents.
“I love the city of Crawford,” Erwin said. “I just want to continue the legacy that came before me.”