An Interview with Dexcter Mack: Candidate for Summerville Town Council District One

With Election Day looming, we turn our attention to the most hotly contested municipal election in Dorchester County—Summerville Town Council District One—in which three candidates vie for the non-partisan seat vacated by 20-year incumbent Aaron Brown.

This is a dynamic and sometimes contentious period in Summerville’s history as citizens and their elected officials wrestle with explosive growth and its many challenges including traffic congestion, housing costs, homelessness, and worries about the changing character of the town.

Within this context, three candidates have stepped forward to represent District One on Summerville’s Town Council: Vickie Fagan, a former Summerville Mayoral candidate; Dexcter Mack, an established community leader and longstanding administrator within Dorchester County’s Auditors Office; and Cornelius “Chubby” Smith, a lifelong resident of Summerville’s District One.

In my capacity as the Dorchester County Democratic Party’s Communications Director, I invited all three candidates to participate in a one-on-one interview. Mack and Smith accepted; Fagan declined. Following is a summary of my nearly hour-long interview with Mr. Mack followed by the full transcript of the interview.

After interviewing Mr. Smith, here are the key pros and cons of his candidacy I believe Democratic voters should consider:

Interview Summary and Key Takeaways

Dexcter, a lifelong Summerville resident and current Office Manager in Dorchester County’s Audits Office, is running for Town Council District One with a vision of balancing growth with maintaining the town’s small-town character. Influenced by his stepfather’s 20 years on the Council, he emphasizes community service, affordable housing, improved recreation for youth and seniors, and strong infrastructure investments like the new public safety complex. He supports responsible law enforcement transparency, collaborative regional solutions for homelessness and transportation, and expanding bike routes and bus services. Prioritizing affordable housing while preserving Summerville’s charm, Dexcter stresses that elected officials work for the people and should ensure inclusive decision-making. Known as a peacemaker, he highlights his leadership experience founding and revitalizing local organizations, including the NAACP branch, District One Civic Association, and community scholarship programs, underscoring his lifelong commitment to serving and uniting the community.

After interviewing Mr. Mack, here are the key pros and cons of his candidacy I believe Democratic voters should consider:

Pros

• Lived Experience - Dexcter is a lifelong Summerville resident and is a stakeholder in the problems and concerns of the District.

• Love of Community - Mr. Mack has served his community in a variety of roles and views his potential role as Town Council Member as another way to serve.

• Leadership Experience - Dexcter’s current work role with the Auditor’s Office as well as his leadership with the local chapter of the NAACP, the District One Civic Association and the Town Council Men’s Ball, establish him as a bonafide leader.

• More Specific Plans - Though neither of the candidates I interviewed presented detailed plans or policy proposals, Mr. Mack’s vision for how to address our party’s concerns regarding immigration raids and housing needs was certainly more defined.

Cons

• No “cons” to report. Based on what I learned from this interview, Dexcter seems to be an excellent candidate for Town Council District One.

The Interview

Gray: Please tell me about your personal and professional background and what motivated you to run for Town Council District One.

Dexcter: I currently work for Dorchester County as an Office Manager in the Audits Office. What motivated me to run is that I’ve lived and worked in Summerville my whole life. Mr. Brown, who was on the Council for 20 years, is my stepfather, and I’ve been with him every step of the way as he served.

I’m the youngest of five children, and I attend the Brownsville Community Church. I went to Summerville High School and then Trident Tech., and I have a doctorate degree in life.

Gray: Are there any particular initiatives or issues that inspired you to run? Is this something that you’ve anticipated stepping into for a long time?

Dexcter: Yes, I’ve been groomed, and I always knew that I wanted to run. I’ve always had it in my heart to serve my community and leave it better than we found it.Gray: What is your long-term vision for District One as a whole?Dexcter: I want to see us develop, while keeping that small town (feel). By improving services, making sure that we continue to be clean and walkable and with access to police, and offering more things to the people of District One. We have great parks and some recreation, but I want to improve it, both for our youth and seniors.

Gray: Are there any specific actions you think need to be taken to achieve that vision?

Dexcter: Well, we need to see what the community wants and needs. With more and more people moving into the area, we need to see what they want and how we can improve on what we have right now.

Gray: The next question relates to Summerville Police Department cooperating with ICE.

Dexcter: I know there was a raid of some sort of a bar on (Route) 78, but that was Dorchester County Sheriff, not Summerville Police Department.

Gray: Is that a guarantee that ICE won’t be requesting us (Summerville PD) to coordinate on a raid of any sort?

Dexcter: That I can’t answer, but if it’s going to protect us and protect the community, let’s do it. But not that they need to pick on anyone who isn’t breaking the law.

Gray: Are there any specific guardrails for transparency that you support?

Dexcter: I would say that there should be guardrails. If there is a warrant that says there is illegal activity going on, let’s go in, but not go and knock on someone’s door just because.

Gray: One of the specific complaints about ICE raids is that they’ve been out of uniform, with masks and unwilling to provide identification.

Dexcter: Yeah, they need to have it, they need to have uniforms so that people can take them seriously and know that they’re not being imitated.

Gray: So that’s an example of one of the guardrails you would advocate for?

Dexcter: Most definitely.

Gray: So let’s talk about homelessness; as you know the new camping ordinance was expanded to include private property. Advocates are concerned that this further criminalizes homelessness. What’s your plan for addressing this issue?

Dexcter: I plan to work with other jurisdictions to address the homelessness issue in the Tri-County area. I see unsheltered people sleeping in (bus) shelters. I know it’s something we have to address. I know there is the place on Miles Road that’s opening eventually, and the place on Central Avenue and I think we’re going to have to dig deep into seeing what we can do as a whole. Unsheltered people (may) come with mental health problems and I do feel we need to work with Berkeley and Charleston Counties to find solutions.

Gray: Okay, the next topic I want to look at is the inherent tension between economic growth, affordable housing, and historic preservation. What are your priorities as you look at those three things and how they come together?

Dexcter: (Regarding) affordable housing, we actually need to do it. Not just use “affordable housing” as a smokescreen to put houses on land. When it comes to the Dorchester County building, I know some people want it torn down, and some don’t, and it’s probably going to go through. I feel as if there should have been a referendum for all of the people of Dorchester County and go from there. As elected officials, we work for the people, not the other way around, so I feel like they should have reached out to the people more on that.

The way I look at it, it’s kind of like having a baby. A baby can’t stay a baby forever. I think we can still grow and preserve the town. We need to manage the way we grow.

Gray: In a fork-in-the-road situation, where would your heart lean - with affordable housing or maintaining the historic character of the town?

Dexcter: My first love would probably be affordable housing. I want everyone to live in a comfortable place. With the town, I think the charm is still gonna be there. I often say that Summerville is one of the best hidden secrets around.

I believe when all is said and done, we need both of them, and you can’t compare them. We have the charm and need good, affordable housing where people can live a productive life and be good citizens of Dorchester Country and the town of Summerville.

Gray: Okay, regarding the new public safety complex, rebuilding the police, fire and court headquarters with a budget of about $60 million. How do you feel about the project? Do you have any concerns or are you solidly on board?

Dexcter: I’m on board because I feel that we can’t grow as a town without investing in our infrastructure. The expense might be a lot at this point, but that building will be there for years and will benefit the whole community.

Gray: Alright. Let’s move on to transportation and traffic. We’ve seen some congestion with the North Maple Street extension, and the Berlin Myers project. What specific traffic or transportation improvement would you advocate for?

Dexcter: I think we need to dissect each area that is congested in Summerville. I know they’re eventually going to expand Parsons Road, and on to Central Avenue. We need to figure out how we can dissect those areas of overcrowding with traffic. We might need to go and see other towns and see what they have done.

Gray: Do you have any thoughts about how you might work with regional agencies to find traffic solutions?

Dexcter: At the Republican Women’s luncheon I was posed with this question, and I know that we have gaps between the Link bus and Carta running on the weekdays and not the weekends, or that people have to find transportation to get from one bus to another. We need better solutions.

And, people love to ride bikes and there are no real bike routes in the Summerville area. I do think if we created that, people would ride their bikes more throughout the whole area.

Gray: Our next topic is about community engagement and constituent services. This is a non-partisan office and I believe the political leanings of the District are pretty balanced. How will you ensure that all people from all communities are heard and represented in Council decisions?

Dexcter: Well that is my expertise. Working in the Dorchester County’s Auditor’s office, I serve all the people. We don’t ask if you’re a Republican or Democrat, we just figure out the best way to help you. That’s how I want to operate on the Town Council. People know me as a peacemaker and I’m a person who wants to get the job done, to make a difference in the community.

Gray: The last real question I have is about leadership. Looking back over your life, or with your family or in the community, tell me a story about a time when you provided leadership and affected a positive change.

Dexcter: I've done everything from founding the Summerville branch of the NAACP, and revitalizing it. I started the District One Civic Association within the community, which we started from the ground up, and I was the president. I started the Summerville Council Men's Ball which has been in existence for over 20 years, and we've awarded local citizens awards and given over $50,000 in high school scholarships.

Leadership to me is something that I have been born with. I know how to lead a group, and know how to continue to maintain it and make sure that everything flows. I recently gave up being President of the Summerville branch of NAACP to run for Town Council, but I left it in good standing, where people can take the baton and keep on running. Leadership comes naturally to me.