Pastor looking to keep Opelika safe, healthy and prosperous
By Will Fairless
Associate Editor
Chuck Adams, student minister and associate pastor at Providence Baptist Church, has announced that he is running for the Opelika City Council Ward 5 seat.
“[Opelika is] just an all-around great city, and I want to be a part of helping it stay that way for future generations,” Adams said.
Adams graduated from Leavell College of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary with a bachelor’s degree in Christian Ministry and a minor in Biblical Studies. He later acquired a master’s degree in Theological Studies.
Adams has lived in Opelika his entire life, save for a short period in high school when he lived just a couple of miles outside the city limits. He and his wife Karesa have two daughters and two grandchildren, all of whom also live in Opelika. “Both of my granddaughters, at this point, will be going through the Opelika school system and living in Opelika growing up,” Adams said, “My wife owns a dual business in Opelika; I’m vested in Opelika.”
He said that this investment is the biggest thing he has going for him, and that even though he’ll be a “newbie” (his word) if elected, he would immediately try to assess Ward 5’s needs. “I think Ward 5 is in pretty good shape,” Adams said, “I think David Canon’s done a fairly good job in his years as city councilman.”
He is relentless in his praise of Opelika, calling it “one of the safest” and “one of the most inclusive” towns there is. He notes the city’s prosperity and says the Opelika police force is the greatest of any town this size. He then retracts that to say it is the greatest of any town of any size. “I can’t say enough good about the city of Opelika. [My family] stayed here because we love Opelika,”
A specific project on which Adams would like to make some progress is connector roads between where the Sportsplex is and Morris Avenue. “I think there needs to be some kind of traffic alleviation to do that,” Adams said, “It can’t be done where there are big trucks running those roads. That would be unsafe for our students, our young people.”
Adams plans on campaigning by mail, on Facebook and with yard signs, despite his reluctance to put himself out there in that way– he predicted it will be “a little awkward.”
“If it’s standing out in the street throwing pebbles at the window to get people to come out, I want people to know I’m running,” Adams said. “I want to see the city of Opelika grow in a healthy way… it stays safe, stays healthy, and stays prosperous.”