Jamie Harris

“We’ve had a lot of success in the past four years, and I want to see it continue and keep Russellville moving in a positive direction,” said Councilman Jamie Harris. He is running for re-election, District 5 on Russellville City Council.

Harris said the contacts he’s made and network he has developed over the past four years are some of the greatest assets he brings to the table as councilman.

“I feel like I have great working relationship with not only local and county officials but also state officials and all of the city boards,” Harris said.

His primary point of pride is the 900 jobs he and the council brought to the city over the past four years – “in a small town like Russellville, that is huge,” Harris said. He is also proud to be a part of downtown redevelopment; although he has heard complaints about downtown, “we’re taking steps and headed in the right direction to get a lot of that changed.” Paving of city streets is a positive accomplishment as well.

For the future, “I want to continue the job growth. We can’t be complacent,” Harris said. He also wants to help search for further revenue to continue paving in the city.

“Another focus is our children. The children are our future. We have to to continue to work to be able to keep them here at home,” Harris said. Retaining Russellville’s youth will be strongly connected to continued job growth, as well as parks and recreation upgrades and continued excellence in Russellville City Schools, promoting superior education, Harris added.

Honest, dependable and hard-working are three characteristics Harris help him find success as a civil servant. He also brings financial skills as an asset to the city – crucial, considering the city’s $40 million in taxpayer revenue over the past four years.

Harris said he strives to be readily available to members of his district in order to address their concerns and problems that arise.

He is married to Mindy, and they have three boys: Bryson, Anthony and Andrew.

Harris has worked with the S.PA.N. program since 1999 as a counselor and is a cattle farmer.

He is a member of the Franklin Cattlemen’s Association, Russellville Masonic Lodge, Newburg Masonic Lodge, Cahaba Shrine and Franklin County Shrine and Russellville First United Methodist Church. He is a third-generation RHS graduate and also attended NW-SCC and Auburn University. He graduated from UNA with a degree in management in 1998.

“I have the experience of the past four years – that’s my track record,” Harris said. “I’m not going to tell you what I’m going to do – let’s look back at what we’ve done. And I want to continue that going forward.

“Russellville is just like one big family, and I want to continue to improve Russellville and make it a place where other people want to live and raise family.”