Mayor Billionis sees commission post as chance to serve public

Note: This is the second of six profiles on candidates in the Fort Scott City Commission election to take place April 3.

Being mayor, Gary Billionis said, is about helping people. Being mayor means fielding phone calls from residents who ask what they should do if they have a problem.

"When I tell a citizen that I'm going to look into what they call me about, I make sure it's done," Billionis said. "I don't drive a street sweeper, repair brick streets, run the asphalt plant, or maintain the water treatment plant, but I can ask our city staff and fellow commissioners to address the needs of our citizens," he wrote in a questionnaire.

Billionis hopes to remain mayor, as he seeks re-election on April 3.

He placed fourth in the primary four years ago, as he did in this February's primary. However, he finished first in the general election that year.

Some ask why Billionis is seeking another term, especially after criticism the city has taken within his four years as mayor.

"That's a pretty good question, my family has asked me that several times," Billionis admitted.

"When I began four years ago, when I decided to run, it was because I've lived here for the last 25 years, raised my family here.

"This community has been very supportive of our family in a lot of different ways. But this was a way I could be really be active and feel like I was a part of the community.

"I really felt like I had something to offer and I felt like I could do a good job for the community and have an opportunity to give back. I still feel that way."

Billionis has served the community as chairman of the Bourbon County Youth Ministries, on the board of the Keyhole Youth Center, as assistant director of the Upward Basketball Program, as a volunteer for the United Way, and through involvement with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

He said he'd like another term to see projects completed that the city has started over the past several years, along with starting others.

One of the projects started is a fire station on the east side of town. Billionis said it will improve public safety in the area. Construction may begin this fall on the new station.

A project he would like to see come to fruition is a new city hall. Billionis envisions a new building for the city's headquarters.

"My personal feeling is when we bring in a business prospect or a family that comes in and visits our city hall to get information, they're looking around saying 'wow, that's not much of a city hall,'" he said. "We don't have to have a palace, but we're looking for a place that said 'welcome.'"

He'd like to have a receptionist at the front door at the new city hall, welcoming people as they enter. He said he would like a second meeting room, for the public to use.

"They (the public) need to see that we are professional and we are serious, that this is a professional building and it represents our community."

The mayor said he doesn't want to bankrupt the community to see that vision happen but would like to see the city have the opportunity for a new city hall.

"I kind of like the fact that we could have city hall as the center of downtown," Billionis said. "If we don't have our offices there (city hall), that wouldn't offend me."

He said the city can afford repairing infrastructure like streets and sidewalks affected by the downtown fire. The city can't, at this point, expand repairs beyond the fire-damaged area.

"The infrastructure downtown is extremely important for us to develop," he said.

The initial goal is to get the utilities in the damaged area, such as sewer and water lines, replaced. Later down the road, he said, matching grants can be provided to building owners for them to update their buildings. The goal is to attract people to downtown.

Billionis was cautious in answering what project he would like the city to pursue the most, saying rather that the city should pursue "everything we can with the money that we have." In his written answers to a Tribune questionnaire, he said that he didn't want to put one project ahead of another, because it wouldn't take into consideration the timing and funding required by grants the city is pursuing for the projects.

Billionis also responded to a rumor that he had called a Eugene Ware Elementary School student a profane name while substitute teaching there.

Billionis said when he was substituting for a teacher at the school last fall, a student got in trouble early in the day, and Billionis moved the student to another area of the classroom. He said the student didn't like it and talked a friend into backing a story that Billionis had made an inappropriate comment. However, Billionis said, other students said he never uttered the derogatory words.

"He made it up," Billionis said. "If it came out of my mouth, it was when I was blacked out."

The story later turned up on a message board on an Internet site.

"In all the dealings throughout the city that I've done, one of the things that I've always made it the point to be is truthful," he said.

Billionis taught for many years in the USD 234 school district before taking early retirement because of a health problem. Later, he returned to work for the school district, teaching physical education at Fort Scott Middle School. He currently works for USD 234 as director of student activities at FSMS.