Darrin Ledford, owner of a printing and graphic design company, has announced he will seek the Chattanooga City Council District 4 seat.
Larry Grohn, who now holds the District 4 seat, has announced his candidacy for mayor of Chattanooga. So far, no other contenders have publicly announced intentions to seek the council seat.
"I love Chattanooga and [am] proud to call this incredible city my home," Ledford said in statement issued after he picked up papers to file his candidacy Friday. "As a father, business owner and community leader, I am also concerned about the future of our community."
Ledford said he decided to seek the office after "a lot of prayers" and many discussions with his family, friends and colleagues, citing concerns that the city still faces serious issues despite its "renaissance and transformation into one of the 'Best Towns' in America."
"I believe District 4 needs a strong, passionate voice that will bring real-world, business convictions to the City Council and advocate for reasonable solutions to the issues we all care about in our community," he said. "It's time to refocus our efforts and identify ways to improve the quality of the streets, reduce crime and gang violence in our neighborhoods and support better economic growth within our city so we can hold the line on property taxes."
District 4 represents Concord, East Brainerd and Summit.
Ledford said he plans to make a formal announcement in the coming weeks and "outline my vision on how we can work together to move Chattanooga forward and make city government better for everyone."
Elections for the Chattanooga mayor and City Council members will be held March 7, in accordance with the city charter.
Contact staff writer Paul Leach at 423-757-6481 or pleach@timesfreepress.com. Follow on Twitter @pleach_tfp.