Office IT director to run for Cape County assessor

When Ron Andrews announced he would run for Cape Girardeau County Assessor next year, he may have jumped the gun a bit.

Andrews, who works in the assessor's office, said he based his decision on the fact that the current long-serving assessor Jerry Reynolds told him he would retire when his term expires. Problem is, Reynolds says he is not ready to publicly say whether he will step down after serving in the post since 1977.

"I'm really not prepared to say," Reynolds said. "Not now. I'm not ready to make a public announcement. You can't even file until March and I've got almost two years left on this term. I'll think about it and maybe decide by the first of the year."

Reynolds said he found out of Andrews' intentions early Friday when Andrews sent him an email before leaving town. After making his announcement, Andrews could not be reached for reaction to what Reynolds said and how it might affect his plans.

In an interview earlier in the week, Andrews said Reynolds indicated to him that he was not going to seek re-election.

"He told me he was going to retire," Andrews said. "I expressed interest in running, and he said he wished me well."

Andrews, 57, has worked in the county assessor's office as information technology director twice in his career, most recently since 2008. That was the same year that Reynolds ran unopposed for this four-year term. Voters will next decide who their assessor will be in November 2012. Andrews said he would run as a Republican, while Reynolds is a Democrat.

Andrews previously worked in the office for 23 years, from 1976 until 1999. In the interim, Andrews took a job developing software for Link America, a transportation provider, until he lost that job due to downsizing. At the assessor's office today, he also serves as GIS coordinator, who does digital mapping to analyze property values.

The assessor's office is responsible for determining assessed valuation of real estate and personal property. Andrews, who has a bachelor's in informational technology from Southeast Missouri State University, said he is service oriented. If elected, Andrews said he has plans to enhance the assessor's website to provide more description of the office's processes. He wants the site to include a system that citizens can use to connect to county data to look at data that is not currently provided, he said. The online system would also make it possible to file personal property online.

"Lastly, I'd like to promote friendly service to citizens of Cape Girardeau County," he said.

smoyers@semissourian.com

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