FAIRBORN — Fairborn’s mayor race has two candidates running who have past and current mayoral experience. Both are running for current Mayor Paul Keller’s seat.
Due to term limitations, Keller is stepping down and Daniel Kirkpatrick and Kevin Knepp are facing off to become the next mayor.
Kirkpatrick, a former Fairborn mayor and council member, wants to see that those involved in public safety roles are taken care of.
“I want to work to see that our police and fire have everything they need to do their jobs,” said Kirkpatrick, who was mayor from 2013-2017. “It’s all about leadership. I’d like to get the neighborhood focus groups going again. Citizens have told me they want to bring back the forums and talk about the schools and STEM program opportunities.”
Kirkpatrick, a retired Air Force colonel, spent 34 years in the service and is a three-time Medical Operations Support Squadron commander. He was deployed to Kuwait in 2003. While deployed overseas as a hospital commander for the start of the war with Iraq, Kirkpatrick received the Bronze Star.
He later went on to teach nursing at Wright State University and retired from there in 2015.
As a Fairborn City Council member (2009-2013), Kirkpatrick still has some of the same goals now that he did then.
“We want to build a new veteran’s memorial in Fairborn. We’ve been working on this project for six years now,” said Kirkpatrick, co-chair of the Fairborn Military Veteran Memorial Project. “Construction is supposed to start next week on Central Avenue.”
Kirkpatrick serves as vice chair with Fairborn’s Environmental Advisory Board and is concerned with environmental issues — like changing the city’s lights from fluorescent lighting to LED lighting.
Until May 2023, he served as the executive director of the Fairborn Area Chamber of Commerce. He also volunteers for the Tecumseh Council of the Boy Scouts.
Knepp currently serves as Fairborn’s deputy mayor and has spent four years on city council.
“I like what I’m doing. I think city council is doing a good job,” said Knepp. “I don’t have a particular agenda. I just feel a need to commit to the city to do something good for the community.”
One of Knepp’s top priorities is the safety of the community.
“We’re just starting our budget for next year,” said Knepp. “As part of our economic development plan, one of our projects is to purchase license plate recognition (LPR) cameras which will be posted in different areas. We can review these cameras and get the license plate.”
Knepp said there is more “right” with the city than “wrong”, but there are some areas of Fairborn “that we’d like to clean up and we’ll continue to work with HUD on those projects.”
“And we’d like to develop ‘blank space’ along Kaufman Avenue,” he added. “We’re also trying to get housing built near the intersection of Broad and Main streets which would be great for Fairborn. As far as a community, it’s nice and easy to get around Fairborn. I’d like to see the improvement of downtown Fairborn improved with more housing and shops offered.”
Knepp serves on the American Legion board as Chaplain and is a Greene County district chair for the Boy Scouts of American.
According to Knepp, a new organization, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base’s Region of Governments, wants to get involved with Fairborn.
“We want to see how we can work with them,” said Knepp, who added that Rob Anderson, Fairborn’s city manager, is president of that council. “Defense contractors are moving in. We think they could bring some work to Fairborn and work together as a team to continue to support the city.”
Reach Karen Rase at 937-502-4534.
