2 enter race for Mount Pleasant council

MOUNT PLEASANT -- A local businessman and an oral surgeon will be added to the list of people hoping to win a Town Council seat in November.

Kenny Oubre, a project manager at Benefitfocus on Daniel Island, and Craig Rhyne of Palmetto Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery have announced their candidacies.

Oubre, who moved from Charlotte in the summer of 2006, said he's running to bring fresh ideas to council.

"I believe Mount Pleasant has all the right ingredients to continue to be the amazing town that first attracted me to it, along with thousands of others. I am running for Town Council because I want to bring in a fresh voice that can help tap into the potential our town holds," Oubre said.

Rhyne, a Mount Pleasant native, returned to the area in 2008 after his honorable discharge from the Army, where he served as a facial and reconstructive surgeon. The Citadel graduate said in a prepared statement that he is interested in helping Mount Pleasant grow in a fiscally responsible way while maintaining all of the great qualities that he grew to love and wants his family to enjoy.

Restaurant owner Paiam Etminan, attorney Christopher Nickels and businesswoman Phyllis Sheffer also have declared their candidacies.

Voters will choose a mayor and four council members Nov. 3.