Troy City Council Candidate Survey: Ed Pennington

Could you tell us about your education, relevant to this position?

 I took some accounting classes years ago that helped me in the business world. What have served me well in council are the management courses and team building seminars that I have attended.

Could you tell us about your personal or professional background, relevant to this position?

My professional background has helped me in my position as councilman in that owning and operating a business is not that different than managing a city. Obviously it is a much smaller scale, but the same challenges exist. I started managing Pennington Collision in 1982 and became owner when my father passed away in 1990. Our business has been located in Troy since 1968. Since that time we have had many opportunities to interact with city staff. I have also assisted the Troy Police Department and Oakland County Prosecutors Office in testifying as an expert witness in numerous property damage cases.

For how long have you lived in Troy?

My wife Phyllis and I moved our family to Troy in 2004,but we had been a part of the community for many years prior. I coached football for 12 years, with the majority of that time spent with the Troy Cowboys football & competitive cheer organization.We both worked with the Troy Athens Athletic Boosters and Phyllis also spent time working with the Troy Boys & Girls Club.

Do you have an activity relevant to this position or an endorsement which you would like readers to know of?

My endorsements include Mayor Dane Slater, Councilwoman Maureen McGinnis, and all of the other current councilmen: Dave Henderson,Wade Fleming, Jim Campbell, and Doug Tietz. I am also endorsed by the Troy Fire Staff Officers Association and the Troy Command Officers Association.

Could you summarize why you are running for city council?

I am running for council to finish the job that I have started. When I was appointed nine months ago, I felt a need to restore harmony to a council that had been fractured and divisive. Our current council works more as a group solving issues. What I had seen in the past were some individuals working on their own agendas or political futures.

What do you think are the greatest issues facing the city? How would you handle them?

While Troy is in a better situation than some of our neighboring cities, we still have issues to address.We need to continue to bring new businesses to Troy, filling vacant buildings. We need to restore city services while continuing to look at areas to streamline. We must commit to taking the necessary steps to ensure the Troy Schools A plus rating is intact for future generations. Attracting and keeping quality employees working for the city is necessary. We have a budget surplus. We must move a portion of this toward our crumbling infrastructure, especially our roads. Repairing our infrastructure is an investment in tomorrow that we must make.