South Hall businessman Ken Cochran announced Tuesday he plans to seek the District 1 post on the Hall County Board of Commissioners currently held by Craig Lutz.

Lutz has announced he would not seek re-election. He has announced his intention to run for the Public Service Commission this year.

“My main thing is making sure that government runs as efficiently as possible here in Hall County,” Cochran said in a phone interview. “I also would like to work to preserve existing historical sites for future generations.”

Cochran, 64, was past president of the Hall County Historical Society.

He said that after attending the Hall County Sheriff’s Office Citizens Academy and Hall County Government Scholars Academy, “I saw some things that might make them run more efficiently, but I also wanted to make sure that I tried my best to get each and every (county employee) a pay raise.”

Cochran said he understands the county’s budget constraints in that regard, even through finances “are getting better.”

He said he has other issues, “but I won’t be putting that out just yet. That will all come with time.”

An Atlanta native, Cochran has lived in Hall since the early 1970s. He is owner of Cochran’s Marine Services, 6027 Atlanta Highway, Flowery Branch.

He also has been active in Boy Scouts leadership, is a member of the Vietnam Veterans of America and serves on the Gainesville-Hall County Metropolitan Planning Organization’s Citizens Advisory Committee.

Cochran, a Republican, ran unsuccessfully for the county commission in the late 1990s, losing to Brenda Branch.

But he grabbed 40 percent of the vote, and that was enough to spark a continuing interest in politics.

“I just felt like it was time (to run again) and I feel like I’m the people’s candidate,” he said.