FOLEY — James M. Wood has announced his candidacy for mayor of Foley.

Wood, 60, is a background researcher for a handful of attorneys specializing in immigration cases, as well as a Republican and retired U.S. Army sergeant.

The mayor’s annual salary varies between $35,000 and $55,000, depending on experience. Wood said he would donate a good share of his salary, if he is elected, to the Foley school of his choice.

“I want to make Foley ‘The Forward City’ again,” Wood said. “We desperately need to rebuild and enhance the social and educational environments that we’re providing for our kids if we expect a better tomorrow.”

Wood proposes the following initiatives:

* Setting up an after-school tutoring program for students in grades one-12 by using retired and volunteer teachers.

* Working with leaders in local business and industry to launch a hands-on, city-sponsored, on-the-job training program for high school seniors, particularly for those taking advantage of classroom instruction at the South Baldwin Center for Technology in Robertsdale, and for unemployed workers.

* Creating a youth-sports program, expanding current sports initiatives to pull local youngsters into after-school and weekend environments and to help attract other young people to Foley.

“I will get funding through the City Council and local donors to help get our schools up to par and better prepare our students for the job market,” Wood said.

Wood’s political platform also includes:

* Stepping up the city’s war on illegal drugs.

* Using City Hall’s web server to its full potential – for example, by putting the city’s checkbook online so that taxpayers can see firsthand where their tax dollars are being spent.

* Continuing the annual $90,000 budget allocation to the John McClure Snook Family YMCA on South Pine Street, but only if the nonprofit center offers reduced-rate memberships of $5 a month to citizens age 62 and above and to city of Foley employees.

* Setting up community-service programs for offenders convicted of non-felony crimes by assigning them to help the elderly with cutting grass, pulling weeds and undertaking other miscellaneous jobs to ease the burdens of Foley’s senior population.

* Installing more sidewalks in Foley so that no child has to walk on or along a street or road, and to provide better access to public, educational and commercial facilities for those who use wheelchairs.

* Devoting more time, talent and money to business and industrial recruiting in an effort to generate more jobs.

* Providing more open government by posting all city of Foley public records on line and eliminating “closed-door” work sessions.

* Providing live streaming video online of all public meetings so that our citizens of Foley have the opportunity to be better informed.

* Improving and expanding the Senior Citizens Center.

* Substantially decreasing the city of Foley’s multimillion-dollar budget debt and by diverting more tax revenue toward faster liquidation of Foley’s mounting $3.2 million warrants and bonds debt. Priorities will be set after an in-depth review is conducted in house, analyzing city spending for the past six years.

* Creating a “splash park” for youngsters that’s equal to or better than a similar facility near the fairgrounds in Robertsdale.

* Instituting a health-and-fitness program for all city employees.

* Creating more diverse and expanded sports and recreational activities.

* Attracting outside sports teams to use our updated and regulation-sized facilities.

* Creating a beach volleyball court and start a city league.

* Advising and keeping the public aware of criminal activities through use of the Internet and local publications.

“I offer a different approach to solving the city’s problems and going back to the future,” Wood said. “I want to entertain innovative ideas while remaining fiscally conservative.”