GUN BARREL CITY - Five candidates will face off in a town hall political forum Tuesday night in the ongoing debate about how economic development on Cedar Creek Lake should be balanced against morality. Two candidates, Sandra Ward and Allen Andis, have climbed on incumbent Mayor Dennis Wood's pro-morality platform in a bid to join him on the City Council if he is re-elected to a second term on May 12. Former Mayor Paul Eaton, who served three terms ending in 2010, is running against Wood on a pro-business platform, along with incumbent council candidates Dennis Baade and Melvyn Hayes. Jim Braswell also is running for a slot on the council. In a recent political ad headlining Wood, Ward, who along with Braswell is opposing Baade for Council West, and Andis, who is opposing Hayes for Council East, joined the mayor in a "Vote for Integrity" campaign message published in Mabank's The Monitor newspaper. The ad urges voters to "Take a stand for moral values," and warns "This election is a battle for the heart and soul of Gun Barrel City." The campaign message is an apparent reference to Mayor Wood's failed effort last year to prevent the extension of alcoholic beverages sales in restaurants from midnight to 2 a.m. on weekends. The council twice passed the ordinance, but Wood spearheaded a petition drive to force an election on the issue in November. Wood and his supporters opposed the extension on the basis of moral and safety concerns. Wood's Baptist pastor encouraged his Mabank church congregation to oppose the extension, and two council members who attended the church and supported the measure reportedly were asked not to return to worship. Proponents of the extension countered that it would benefit the economy. Voters approved the extension on a near 2 to 1 vote. Supporters of the extension said passage of the extension would attract new businesses to the area by corporations such as Applebees, which considered expansion to Gun Barrel City but never followed through with the plan. The Hideout, another proposed development that also would have benefited from the extension, failed to make traction. Wood acknowledged in a campaign statement he clashes with current council members on issues such as city funding of the July 4 festival and allowing the consumption of alcoholic beverages at it. He claimed the money would be better spent on more practical city needs. Wood endorsed Ward, who is the owner of Bluebonnet Emporium, and Andis. In his campaign statement Eaton promised to bring an end to "bickering" and "hidden agendas" that he claims now pervades city government. The ballot will include a measure to allocate .025 of the local sales tax to fund road maintenance rather than to economic development activities. The campaign forum will be held Tuesday, May 1, at 6:30 p.m. in Brawner Hall behind Old City Hall. It is being hosted by the Gun Barrel City chapter of the Cedar Creek Lake Area Chamber of Commerce. Early voting is April 30 through May 8.