Mike Dow facts for kids

Michael Craig Dow, born in 1947, is an American politician. He was the 106th mayor of Mobile, Alabama. He served from 1989 to 2005. Many people say he helped make downtown Mobile a much better place. He was even thought of as a possible governor in 2010, but he chose not to run.

Early Life and Education

Mike Dow was born in South Carolina. He had a difficult childhood. His grandfather, Henry Gainous, helped raise him from age 14.

Dow joined the United States Army. He served as a paratrooper. Later, he was a door gunner on helicopters. He survived several helicopter crashes. After a crash where his friend was killed, Dow left the military.

After his military service, Dow went back to college. He earned a master's degree in accounting. This was from the University of South Alabama.

Business Career

In 1979, Dow helped start a company called Quality Micro Systems. He started it with his brother-in-law, Jim Busby. Dow held many important jobs there. He was Vice President of Sales, Marketing, and Accounting.

Quality Micro Systems made printers. It competed with big companies like Hewlett Packard and Canon. At one point, it was even listed in the Fortune 500. Dow helped create the company's sales network in Europe.

After a big stock market drop in 1987, the company had to get smaller. It was later bought by Minolta in 2000. Before this, Dow left QMS. He decided to enter politics. He joined the Democratic Party. In 1989, he ran for city council.

Becoming Mayor of Mobile

For many years, Mobile had a different type of city government. In the 1980s, it changed back to a mayor-council system. This allowed more people to have a say. Arthur Outlaw became mayor in 1985. He was the first directly elected mayor since 1911.

Mayor Outlaw worked on a big plan for the city. This plan suggested building a convention center. It would be on the Mobile River. This was meant to help downtown Mobile grow. However, some people did not like the idea of the convention center.

Dow first planned to run for City Council. But other leaders suggested he run for mayor instead. Dow decided to run for Mayor. He wanted to reach out to all voters. He worked with African-American church leaders. He often went to services at African-American churches. He also spoke out against the convention center.

Dow won the election by a large amount. His win showed a change in Mobile's leadership. He had strong support from middle-class white voters and African Americans.

Mayoralty: Downtown Development

When Dow first became mayor, he showed interest in making downtown better. Even though he had campaigned against the convention center, he started to support it. Dow proposed a plan called "The String of Pearls." This was a series of projects. They were meant to help downtown Mobile grow. He continued with the plans from the previous mayor.

Dow spent a lot more money on city projects. He also increased the city's sales tax to 4%. This made Mobile's total sales tax rate 9%.

During his first term, Dow worked with county leaders. They built the Mobile Government Plaza. This was the first building in the U.S. to hold both city and county governments.

In 1993, Dow was re-elected. He won with over 65% of the vote. Bess Rich was elected to the city council that year. She often questioned Dow's spending. She worried about how the city would pay for all the new projects. Most of the city council supported Dow.

Rich also opposed borrowing money for a new baseball stadium. She believed people should vote on such projects. She worried about the city's debt. She felt Dow focused too much on downtown projects. This left less money for other city needs. In 2001, Bess Rich ran against Dow for mayor. This was his toughest election since 1989.

City Growth and Challenges

Another important part of Dow's time as mayor was trying to expand the city limits. The city's boundaries had mostly been set in 1956. Dow suggested adding parts of West Mobile and Tillman's Corner. But these plans did not pass. Dow was very popular in the city. However, he was not as popular in the suburbs.

He supported expanding gambling in the state. Many religious groups opposed this. They worried about increased taxes. Over time, Dow's support from white voters changed. But he gained more support from black Mobilians. Dow was easily re-elected in 1997. People even started talking about him running for governor.

During Dow's third term, downtown development continued. In 2001, Dow signed a deal to build a skyscraper. The RSA Tower is now 745 feet tall. It stands over the city.

In 2001, Bess Rich ran for mayor. She challenged Dow on the city's borrowing. Dow won the election 61-39%. He won every district except Rich's own District 6. In 2001, some of Dow's allies on the council were replaced. New council members formed a group against Dow.

His fourth term focused on other projects. These included the Alabama Cruise Ship Terminal. Crime in Mobile continued to go down. Dow's popularity grew as people saw the improvements downtown. The "Mardi Gras Park" was also approved during this time.

2005 Mayoral Election

In early 2005, Dow announced he would not run for a fifth term. He stayed out of the first round of the election. The main candidates were Sam Jones and Ann Bedsole. Jones hoped to become the city's first black mayor. Bedsole had a lot of money for her campaign.

In the first election, Jones almost won outright. He got 46% of the vote. Peavy came in second with 37%. Ann Bedsole and Bess Rich each received about 14%. The runoff election was between Jones and Peavy. Both were seen as supporters of Dow's work.

A few days before the runoff, Dow officially supported Sam Jones. Jones then won the election with a 57-43% margin. Dow officially left office in October 2005.

Hurricane Katrina's Impact

Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast near the end of Dow's term. Mobile experienced strong winds and flooding. It was the worst storm surge since 1916. Downtown Mobile also flooded heavily. Dow was at a press conference with President Bush. The storm hit at the end of his time as mayor. So, Hurricane Katrina did not greatly affect Dow's legacy. The recovery work went to the new mayor, Samuel L. Jones.

After Being Mayor

After leaving office, Dow worked for his brother-in-law again. This time it was for a company called CentraLite. He also became involved in creating the Alabama Motorsports Park. This park would be located north of Mobile. Dow helped secure the site in Mobile County. He now serves on the board for the track.

Political Views and Future

Dow tried to keep party politics out of city government. By the end of his time as mayor, he had support from different groups. These included white Republicans and black Democrats on the city council. His opponents were white Republicans who had support from working-class whites. These mixed groups formed because city elections are non-partisan.