Experience

Throughout his years in public service, Nathaniel Ledbetter has lived by the belief that a community can accomplish great things when its people work together. For more than 14 years, he served as a Councilman and Mayor for the City of Rainsville, where he had the opportunity to be part of tremendous progress in the city.

Economic development was a major focus of Ledbetter's years in public office. He worked closely with the city's industrial development board to successfully recruit Sola Hevi-Duty to Rainsville. This move helped save jobs that were likely to move out of state, and it helped create jobs as the company expanded through the years.

When a supplier for Alabama's new Honda manufacturing plant was looking for a home, Ledbetter joined the efforts to attract the company to DeKalb County. Those efforts were successful, and RTI has created hundreds of jobs for the region. Ledbetter was blessed to be serving as Mayor of Rainsville when the auto supplier held its groundbreaking ceremony and built its state-of-the-art manufacturing plant in the city.

For many years, citizens in the area have worked to establish a large multi-use facility for livestock, entertainment and community activities. As Mayor of Rainsville, Ledbetter coordinated the purchase of the property where construction is now underway for the Northeast Alabama Agribusiness Center. The facility is already having a significant economic impact on the region, and will continue to strengthen the local economy for years to come.

When Ledbetter was first elected to the Rainsville City Council, the city's fire department had one 1960 model truck and one 1970 model truck. The department was staffed completely with volunteers. Through the years, he worked alongside fellow council members and mayors to build the department; when he left office, Rainsville had four full-time firefighters, a new fire station, four new fire trucks and two new emergency response vehicles.

Ledbetter understands that a solid infrastructure is vital for the progress of a region. As a Councilman and Mayor, he worked to pave roads throughout the city. He worked to improve police protection, sanitation service and other city services. He also worked to extend the city's sewer system to tie on neighboring towns, in order to provide greater growth opportunities for the region while helping operate Rainsville's sewer treatment facility more efficiently.

One of Ledbetter's most fulfilling projects to work on was the construction of the Tom Bevill Enrichment Center. This facility serves as a nutrition site for area senior citizens, where they can come each weekday for a hot meal, activities and fellowship.

As with the senior population, Ledbetter feels that a strong community must support its young people. He led efforts to build the Field of Dreams Sports Complex, where hundreds of children participate each year in organized community sports programs.

While serving on the City Council, Ledbetter researched ways to improve Rainsville's garbage collection service. The old method of manually collecting garbage, with employees riding on the back of a truck, was becoming increasingly dangerous, inefficient and dirty as the city's population grew. At Ledbetter's recommendation, the council approved the purchase of an automated sanitation truck. Requiring only one operator and significantly shortening route times, automation helped the city become cleaner and safer. It also took the sanitation program from a money-losing service to one that generated extra revenue that could be used to fund road improvement projects.

Ledbetter believes that government services should not only be cost-effective, but they should also be convenient. He led efforts to locate the DeKalb County Revenue Commissioner and Probate Judge Annex in Rainsville. Area residents may buy their car tags here, pay property taxes, and renew a number of licenses. This not only made government services more convenient for citizens of the Sand Mountain area, it significantly improved wait times and parking problems for those who utilize these services in Fort Payne. When a vote was held to determine if the Annex would remain open, more than 75% of voters agreed the Annex was a benefit to all citizens.