For the 2019 Voters Guide, we emailed town and city candidates a set of 14 questions on professional experience, local priorities and general issues. We have included those questions and the unedited responses. We have noted when candidates left questions unanswered. We have also provided links to candidate websites, campaign funding reports and other local media coverage when available.
Any questions or suggestions should be sent to: whitmancowatch@gmail.com
CANDIDATE BACKGROUND
Running against: John Jaeger
Website: None
Social media: None
Other recent coverage:
Whitman County Gazette: Tekoa city council adds two members
QUESTIONNAIRE
What is your current occupation or job title?
City Council Member
What other memberships or affiliations would you like to list for voters?
(Declined to answer)
What professional accomplishment are you most proud of and why?
(Declined to answer)
What is your vision for your community and are there any other cities that you see doing things right or would like to emulate?
My concern is my city’s future. Our young people are steadily leaving our city to find better jobs and futures in other places. I want to see more businesses and better job opportunities that will encourage young people to stay and start their families here in Tekoa. Several of our neighboring towns are already doing this and are an excellent source of information. As a council member, I want to see a council that governs by policy, not by favoritism; that respects our farmers and landowners; and that is more honest and transparent with our citizens.
What is your philosophy for guiding new business and housing development? What, if any, role should the council play in recruitment or restriction?
It’s important to remember that without our businesses, our town will not exist for long. It is the council’s job to help make an environment friendly toward new and existing businesses alike, and to ensure that our policies aren’t making it difficult for them to thrive in our city. I also believe the city shouldn’t “punish” businesses just because they use more resources, and that they shouldn’t play favorites when setting policies for businesses.
What would you list as your highest priorities for local infrastructure repairs, expansions or new projects?
Tekoa has many needs, from an aging water system that needs revamped to roads that are in rough shape. Parts of town need new sidewalks and other ways to ensure people can get to and from work safely. The council also needs to review its policies considering the handling of buildings in serious disrepair. Concerning the redoing of our water system, currently our biggest infrastructure project, I believe it is important to have a younger voice in these discussions, as it is the young people and their children who have to bear the responsibility to pay off the project.
What do you consider your community’s greatest housing challenge and what steps would you take to address it?
Tekoa is already known for its affordable housing options. However, problems remain. One of our biggest current issues is the right way to handle homeless people living in structures without proper utility hookups who are causing problems for their neighbors. While only partly a council issue, it requires reviewing the policies for handling issues like these and making sure they are being followed, while ensuring our citizens that we are listening to their concerns.
Do you think your community provides adequate resources for public safety services (police and fire) and what, if anything, would you change?
I am very grateful for the efforts of our volunteers who serve on the ambulance board and as members of the fire department, as well as the efforts of the Whitman County Sheriff to keep our community safe. However, I am very concerned about the difficulty in keeping Tekoa “covered”. We have difficulty keeping our ambulance staffed – a critical shortcoming – and citizens who express that they wish we had a stronger law enforcement presence. We need to do everything we can as a council to work with these groups to make sure Tekoa isn’t lacking in safety services.
How would your rank your expectations for council/city government transparency on a scale from 1 to 5, with 1 indicating a discrete approach to governing and 5 indicating a proactively open approach?
Three
Do you consider your community’s tax rates high or low? As a steward of taxpayer dollars, how do you approach balancing demands for city service against the citizen tax burden?
There are certainly other places with higher tax rates than ours. However, current city issues, especially redoing our sewer plant, are forcing the council to raise some taxes. I take the position of “steward” very seriously, and want to use caution in these discussions, since we run the risk of making it more difficult to live and work in our city. I believe we need someone in these discussions who has a long-term vision for our city. We need to have representation for the young people who are actually going to have to pay off this money in the future, long after the people who voted for it have retired or moved away. We need to be telling the citizens where there money is going, and ensure it is actually saved for those purposes.
Do you support the council enacting policies to address climate change or promote environmental sustainability? If so, what steps would you take?
Climate change is a natural process that has been a part of the earth since its formation and there is nothing the council could do to change that. It is our job as a council to enact policies that ensure wise stewardship of our beautiful portion of the Palouse without adding unnecessary regulations to our farmers and ranchers, most of whom are already doing what they can to take care of their land. Decisions like these need to be made with careful study and research, not rashly, fighting over arguments and emotions instead of fact. Quite often, man’s attempts to “fix” ecosystems only aggravates the problems they face.
What do you think of existing local regulations on cannabis businesses and production operations?
Generally appropriate
What, if any, role do you think the council should play in promoting local arts, cultural events or tourism?
Tekoa is certainly not lacking in this category. We have the Empire Theater, a museum, multiple education programs for our kids, are located on the Palouse Scenic Byway, and hope to become famous for establishing a bicycle trail through town. Most of these projects are headed by citizen boards and are not solely a council issue. Establishing positive teamwork between the council and these boards is a beneficial thing. That said, I firmly believe the council needs to maintain good relationships with our surrounding landowners and never assume we can use their land for tourism (or city) purposes without adequate restitution. We also need to remember that tourism alone cannot keep the city alive; it relies on businesses and industries that cause people to want to live here, not just to pass us by once or twice a year.
If you could wave a magic wand and instantly change one thing about your community, what would it be and why?
Here’s an idea…what if the water problem could just instantly be fixed so we didn’t have to put that burden on our citizens!
It’s not an easy answer, because there isn’t just one thing that could instantly improve the community. It’s a good community, for the most part, and best of all, it’s home.