Bladen commissioner: Gooden says agriculture success is pivotal

David Gooden is seeking reelection as one of five candidates for three countywide at-large seats on the Bladen County Board of Commissioners.

The term is for four years. Gooden is a Republican.

Gooden, 70, is a farmer.

He has served on the county commission in two stints, winning in 2008 and again in 2016. In 2012, he came up just 11 votes short.

“My number one philosophy is keep tax rates down,” Gooden said. “And, anybody that pays taxes, that hits home. We’ve got a lot of farmers in the county. The farmers pay a lot more than the average citizen. I like to keep it down as low as we possibly can.

“We’re fixing to go through reevaluation, or are going through it now. A lot of times a new tax rate gets set. And I want to be sure everybody gets a fair shake in that thing. People that have waterfront property, and with intense livestock operations, their taxes really jumped.”

Among the issues he’s campaigning on, Gooden said, “Schools, that’s going to be … are they going to build another charter school, or support education? They’ve got a bunch of problems. They need to close some schools. That’s one of the biggest issues we’ve got.”

He also says the impact of lawsuits against the farm industry could have a significant impact on the county.