Overview:
• The top two candidates advance to the November election and will likely win, as there are no Republicans running.
• District 1 includes Spring Lake, Fort Bragg, and parts of western, central and northern Fayetteville, the Murshison Road corridor, downtown Fayetteville, and the Cedar Creek Road area.
CityView interviewed the five candidates in the 2026 Democratic primary for Cumberland County District 1. Below are the questions and answers for candidate Garry “Moe” Murray.
Interviews with the other candidates:
Candidate: Garry “Moe” Murray
Elected office experience: none
CityView: If elected, what are three things you would like to do or accomplish or work on?
Garry “Moe” Murray:
- First of all, I think all of us are paying too much in taxes, so the tax burden is something that I want to focus on. But especially with seniors.
- We need to care about the taxpayers’ money. We need to, you know, make better decisions and not just spend money, like you can get it back from the taxpayer anytime.
- “Transparency. I think that the people who’s paying taxes—our community— need to understand where their money is going.
And just like this Crown—this Event Center that did not go up. We spent millions of dollars on that. And I think the people need to understand why. I want to understand why.
CV: The county is commencing with plans to expand water services countywide in a project estimated to cost $1 billion to $1.4 billion.
Some residents worry that they will have to pay fees for waterlines that pass their property, and that they don’t want to be forced to take the water. Some residents don’t want growth that water service may bring to their communities.
What are your thoughts on the effort to expand water service?
You have to address the water issue, because we need it. But at the same time, we can do it in a smart way. … But at the same time, we need to hear from the community. And we don’t need to disregard what they say as it relates to that.
CV: What are your thoughts on plans for the county to build a regional aquatic center?
I don’t have enough information to comment on that. … It doesn’t sound like a necessity, if we’ve got problems with income, with money and taxes. … [It’s important to] have things that our community can enjoy. But the first thing is to address the necessities first. … But is it something that’s going to enhance our community? You certainly consider things like that. … Do the necessary research to make a good decision.
CV: The school system says it needs $610 million for capital projects. How should county commissioners address this request?
We’ve got to fully research it and understand what all is involved there. You’ve got to listen to the residents, the parents of students, and so forth, and understand the issue before you can address it.
So since I don’t have all the information concerning that, I can’t really address it like I would like to.
But again, anything that the community says they need, I think we have an obligation to listen to it. We … might not always be in a position where we can go follow through with it. …
But yes, anything that the community thinks is important, we need to at least give them some sort of answer or address it in some sort of way.
CV: Now that the Crown Event Center project is canceled, the county is pursuing renovations at the old Crown Theatre and Arena, and wants to spark development there. Your thoughts and ideas? Do you agree or disagree with the cancellation?
I don’t understand the reasons for the cancellation, number one. … I do have a problem with having spent millions of dollars of taxpayers’ money, and we get nothing for it. … I want to understand why that happened, okay? And then we, then we deal with it from that standpoint. …
But it also tells me that somebody didn’t do their homework in regards to that project. What did they not do when they got into a situation where they had to stop in the middle of it. I need to understand all of that.
CV: There’s talk of private or public-private development downtown on the former parking lot in front of the county courthouse, where the Event Center was going to be built. But some people who work in and who patronize the courthouse want it returned to parking. What do you want to see there?
We need to understand: What is the most pressing need?
We have to have parking. So to me, you address needs before wants. …
I’ve had to go down to the courthouse myself … and have had some issues trying to find parking. So I certainly can understand that part of it.
But to me, you don’t just just decide to do something else when you haven’t taken care of another need that already exists.
CV: Some county residents are concerned about the vast amount of electricity that data centers use, plus their use of water, and other issues. What are your thoughts on data centers?
We got to research it and understand: Are all of the concerns valid? No. 1., with these data centers are those valid concerns?
We need to hire necessary professionals, experts in the field, to study the project. Is this something that would work? …
The net result is: It should benefit the community. That’s the net result. And it shouldn’t put us in a strain where we’re having to pay more taxes because of decisions that have not been properly vetted. …
So I’m saying: Take the time to do the necessary studies to make a good decision. And then give the people a say in it. What does the community want?
Senior reporter Paul Woolverton can be reached at pwoolverton@cityviewnc.com.
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