The Mayor of Centreville: A Name Everyone Knows
by Sheila Duncan
If you’ve ever spent more than five minutes in Centreville, chances are you’ve heard of Mayor Mike Oakley — and probably in more ways than one! Born and raised in the heart of Bibb County, Mike’s name is as familiar as the smell of fresh biscuits on a Sunday morning. Whether you’re at the local diner or bumping into him at the hardware store, you can bet he’s got a smile, a handshake, and a story that will have you laughing before you can ask, “How’s it going, Mike?” Known for his down-to-earth humor and genuine love for his hometown, Mayor Oakley is the kind of guy who makes sure that Centreville isn’t just a city—it’s a community where everyone knows your name… and probably your dog’s name too! I asked Mike some questions – let’s see what he has to say.
What inspired you to be mayor of Centreville?
“My entire family has been involved in community service since before I was born. My paternal grandfather, Jim Oakley Sr., was mayor from the 1950’s to the 1970’s, my dad, Jim Jr., was on the city council then appointed by the governor to fill an unexpired term of Tax Collector, which he did for 12 years, and my mom served on every study club, as city planner and Christmas parade organizer as well as in public relations for what is now First US Bank. My maternal grandfather, Joe Narramore, of Prattville and a WWI veteran, returned home to serve as the liaison for every VA that was being built in Alabama. When my wife, Sharon, and I moved back here in 1992, I volunteered for the Bibb Schools Foundation Board, the Chamber of Commerce Board and the high school Booster Club. I also ran for and was elected to the Bibb County Board of Education, a position I proudly held for 23 years. I served as president of the Schools Foundation, President of the Chamber of Commerce and Chairman of the Board of Education for most of my time there. I also had the privilege of serving in the U.S. Army and the Alabama Army National Guard for 39 years, retiring after having served as a Sgt. Major and a Command Sgt. Major while overseas in a combat area of operations. When you serve your country, you immediately join the ranks of those who committed to serving something larger than ourselves. Covid had run all of us out of our offices to our homes and I was working in Birmingham at Alabama Power. When the opportunity to run for Mayor opened up, I had a number of people encourage me to run. I first had to get permission from Alabama Power to run. I thought and prayed about it and knew that I had certainly put in a lot of years promoting and supporting my community, and I have developed a ton of contacts that are valuable in state and federal government, so my family and I made the decision to run.”
How can you describe your town in three words?
“Moving on up!”
What was our favorite part of serving as mayor?
“My favorite part of serving as mayor is the unique opportunity to help my hometown in positive ways. I approach every situation with a positive mindset and try to get others to “buy in” to that. I know that by utilizing my talents and training that I worked hard to acquire through the League of Municipalities and the West Alabama Regional Planning Agency, I have a unique opportunity in our history to make a positive difference in the direction of Centreville. I am extremely proud of that.”
How do you stay connected to the community on a personal level?
“That is funny! I think that anyone who knows me knows that if something is going on in our town that I am involved. I am always asked, “how do you do what you do?” I answer that I love being mayor and being involved and accessible 24-7 is part of the job. I don’t actually look at it as a job, I think of it as community service.”
If our town had a mascot, what would it be?
“Gosh, besides our Choctaw mascot, which pays homage to the native Americans that once lived here, I would say maybe a Bulldog. We have people who are persistent in going after what they want and don’t stop until they get it.”
What’s the most funny or unexpected thing that has happened to you as mayor?
“We were having a meeting with the street department once and I mentioned something about at STOP sign that I thought was unnecessary. About two weeks later I noticed that it was gone. Next day I said something to Pete Jackson, street supervisor, and he said, ‘You didn’t want that moved?’ I started having to watch what I said!”
If you could host any celebrity to showcase our town, who would it be and what would we show them?
“I don’t know how to answer that, but it would have to be one of the most popular and upstanding celebrities and I would take him on a tour through our historic city and then a float down the Cahaba River.”
What is a big dream you have for the future of our community?
“My dream is that Centreville will remain a ‘bedroom community’ but be a Mecca for tourism and artisans and boutique owners to call our town their home. My motto is ‘OTYT – Our town is your town.’”
What is one thing about our town that you would like to see improved in the next year?
“Well, we were recently successful in obtaining a sidewalk improvement for almost $1 million that will transform our town from Hwy 82 to the river bridge. That is a start. What everyone will see before that is that through Main Street a number of businesses were able to get facade grants that will transform storefronts and go towards making our historic district a ‘must see’ tourism attraction. We are also actively working to recruit the right type of businesses to enhance the employment opportunities of our citizens.”
What is one Innovative idea you’d like to implement for our town?
“We have one of the most technologically advanced wireless companies in Alabama Lightwave and one of the coolest and most innovative things we have done is to put a weather camera on the radio tower uptown. I am friends with Fox 6 weatherman, Wes Wyatt, and through that partnership we came up with that idea. It has resulted in untold free publicity and awareness of our city. As far as tech advances, I would like to see our entire area become a hub of wireless technology. That opens the door to not only young entrepreneurs but businesses and individuals that rely on fast and reliable internet capability. At this point in time, no child should have to leave their home to hook up to a wireless internet connection to do their homework. It’s a game changer.”
If you had unlimited resources, what’s the first thing I would do for our town?
“First, I would buy property next to the Cahaba River and put in a first-class boat landing. This would enable us to not only provide more recreational opportunities but open the waterway from here to the Alabama River in Selma. We could host bass tournaments, long river floats for recreation and more. Then I would pave every road in our city and have our very own garbage service, free of charge!”
How do you unwind after a busy day leading the town?
“Well, I am never, ‘not on,’ but I love golf, I love playing with our grandchildren and going to the BMC Wellness Center to work out and I also love to play one of my guitars. Music is a fantastic mental and stress reliever, and I have a guitar in my office that I will grab and strum a few songs to relax my mind.”
If you weren’t mayor, what would I be doing?
“Well, since 1993, I have been involved with civic and community efforts in one way or another, so I know I would still be doing that. I may still be working at Alabama Power, a job I loved, and helping our state through that connection. You will never find me not doing ‘something constructive.’”
What was your favorite childhood memory growing up here?
“As children, we had scads of friends who rode bicycles all over town and to Brent and back. Then a lot of us graduated to dirt bikes and that was a blast. One of my favorite memories is that we lived in a small house right below Town Hill, on Walnut Street, across from what is now City Hall (It was a pine thicket before that). Skateboards had come out and as a seven-year-old I could ride mine down the Town Hall sidewalk, all the way to town. That was a pure adrenaline rush! On Saturday mornings, uptown Centreville was absolutely packed with people shopping and walking and greeting each other. That was every Saturday morning until 12:00. It was an amazing time. We had two old timey hardware stores, and I can still remember the smell of the stuff that they used to clean the hardwood floors. There was a drugstore with a soda fountain, a men’s clothing store and a woman’s clothing store as well as a few others and two banks uptown at one time.”
Do you have a go-to Karaoke song or fun hobby the public may not know about?
“Well, years ago, Alabama Power put on a big fundraiser for United Way. Someone asked me if I would mind dressing up as Elvis Presley and doing a spoof for the effort, so they got me a costume, a wig and the signature sunglasses along with some real boots and we had a ball doing it. not long after that someone suggested that I should do that for Halloween. That evening, what started as a fun joke ended up at about 11:30 after requests to go from house to house singing and playing Elvis Presley songs. Since that point I have played, dressed up and sang as Elvis from Florida to California. It has been an absolute blast doing that and I’ve loved every minute. I appeared as Elvis for a fundraiser for the Woodstock senior center and also for Christmas and Valentine events for Woodstock, Brent, area churches and for anniversary celebrations. I’ve also done it at many senior centers, nursing homes and for special events. Another fun thing I do, is to play at open microphone opportunities with just my guitar and me. Go-to song? It would have to be, “Brown-eyed girl” by Van Morrison. I love that song and my wife, Sharon, has brown eyes!”
Well, you heard it folks, maybe you found out a little something you didn’t know about Mayor Oakley.
Exploring your community allows you to uncover its hidden gems and forge meaningful connections with your neighbors. Thank you, Mayor Mike Oakley, for taking the time to answer our questions so that we may get to know you and your family on a more personal level.
