Mary Buckelew
Mary M. Buckelew (born ) represented District 3 in the Jefferson County Commission for four terms from 1990 to 2006. She chaired the Commission's Technology and Land Development Committee and was also president of the commission for her first two terms.
Buckelew graduated from Ensley High School. She was one of the founders of a Parent-Teacher Association in McCalla in the 1970s.
Buckelew, a moderate Republican, was elected to the County Commission in 1990 and took on the role of President of the Commission.
In 1997 Buckelew was honored as one of Governing magazine's Public Officials of the Year. She was lauded for bringing decorum and relevance to a County Commission plagued by infighting and for bringing the county's numerous municipalities and competing agencies to the table where agreements on joint purchasing and the establishment of a county-wide sewer system.
Buckelew, who chaired the Jefferson County Emergency Management Authority, introduced several provisions related to the county's emergency response resources. She was honored by the Federal Emergency Management Authority (FEMA) for her work in 2002.
In 2006 Buckelew introduced an ordinance drafted by the Business Alliance for Responsible Development that sought to reduce environmental protections favored by the Jefferson County Planning and Zoning Commission.
Buckelew retired from the commission in 2006. Bobby Humphryes succeeded her in office. Although he had run on a platform of reducing county expenditures, one of his first actions after taking office was to buy $24,000 of new furnishings and equipment to make Buckelew's former office, decorated in soft greens with wood, more "masculine" and "modern".
Mary Buckelew Parkway between Mt Olive and U. S. Highway 31 in Gardendale is named for her.
References
- Mahtesian, Charles (1997) "In the Cause of Consensus". Governing magazine.
- Crowe, Christina (October 19, 2006) "Got Flood Insurance?" Black & White
- Walton, Val (September 23, 2008) "Former Jefferson County Commissioner Mary Buckelew agrees to plead guilty to obstruction of justice." Birmingham News