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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (May 21, 1976)
County Comm. Pos. N0.3 Dotson ‘Weinstein and I could straighten out the county’ By WES HEATH Of the Emerald “Not a damn one of the county commissioners is using any common sense,” said John Dotson, candidate for Pos. No. 3. “Weinstein and I could straighten out the county in two years,” he said. "Elliott says, ‘I want no new taxes. Let’s cut spending,’ and then votes to spend thousands of dollars on a mural. Where does he think that money is coming from — the Great Jose?” Dotson said. Commissioner Frank Elliott will be vying with Dotson, his Craig: Former state rep now tries for commissioner By LESTER MANN Of the Emerald A former state legislator, Jack Craig is attempting to re-enter public office as Lane County Commissioner. A Democrat, Craig faces John Dotson and incumbent Frank Elliott in the primary election for Pos. No. 3. Craig was elected State Representative in 1970 and served two years. In 1973 he became House Speaker Richard Eymann's top ad ministrator after deciding not to run for another legislative term. Since early 1975, Craig, 53, has worked as a deputy assessor for Lane County. Jack Craig Craig lost to Elliott in the primary four years ago by only 483 votes. In all this will be his fourth try for a commissioner s seat, he also lost in 1966 and 1968, after receiving the Democratic nomination. If Craig has a campaign slogan, it probably is “Get a handle on Lane County finan cial problems.” He says that frequently, and explains that it can best be accomplished by n_—__ reduced costs and increased efficiency. Craig supports the proposal to expand the board to five members. In fact, win or lose in the election, he says he will start an initiative drive to get the matter on the November ballot. Under his plan the county would be divided into five districts of equal popula tion. Each district would nomi nate candidates for election county-wide. He would also cut the salaries of the commis sioners from $27,000 to $22,500. Another of Craig's “get a handle’’ plans is to establish an elected auditor in the county “to determine if the dif ferent departments are operat ing efficiently, or if the depart ment is needed at all." On the jail issue, Craig says, “It’s only one (proposal) we’ve got. The commissioners failed in making it a more attractive package.” He says there were other ways to defray the costs of the project, such as charg ing the cities increased fees for housing their prisoners, and paying for the parking struc ture through revenue bonds which would be paid by fees charged for parking. In this way, he says, the money being spent on the parking structure could be used on the jail in stead. Craig says the county’s new Public Service Building was "a mistake in the way the com missioners did it." "There's no doubt about the need for it," says Craig, "but they should have let the peo ple in on it (the decision)." Craig also supports the es tablishment of a county library. He says during his term in the Legislature, he introduced more library bills than any legislator ever. Craig graduated from the University in 1946 with a B.A. in journalism. former campaign manager, and Jack Craig in the May primary election. “Elliott has been promising some things for 16 years,” Dotson said. “As for Jack Craig,” he added, “I think he lacks the business expertise." Long before Dotson had any political aspirations, he worked in Grants Pass and Eugene as an automobile salesman and was employed in retail sales work by Sears and Montgomery Ward. Dot son owns National Cycle Ser vice, which he established in 1971. Following his graduation from high school in West Vir ginia, Dotson enlisted in the navy in 1944 and married three years later. “I’ve got six children and five grandsons,” Dotson said, “and I don’t want to see their freedoms sold down the river any longer.” John Dotson “I haven’t said this before publicly, but I will. I’m running because I’m scared. The county has really turned socialist in the last few years and if people don't do anything about it soon, we ll all be sold into slavery. Believe me.” “If that’s radical,” he said, “then I’m the damndest radical that ever existed.’’ Asked whether he favored the proposal to increase the number of county commis sioners from three to five, Dot son replied, “If that’s a good idea, why not elect two more governors? No — nothing supplants old-fashioned lead ership,” he said, “As far as I’m concerned, electing two more commissioners would just give us 40 per cent more dum mies.” “State departments like LCDC that interfere with our home rule,” he said, “are going to back into a buzz saw when they back into me. There is no room in a democracy for an arbitrary board.” Dotson said he favored the repeal of SB 100 which created LCDC. Elliott: Says tax increases, budget cuts unnecessary because of revenue By CHRIS STORY Of the Emerald Lane County can operate on practically no taxes according to Frank Elliott, Democratic in cumbent for Lane County Commissioner Position No. 3. And no budget cuts will be necessary, he says, because the revenue from timber re ceipts, the garbage levy and Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) funds provide the monies needed to maintain all necessary ser vices. Elliott, 65, has served as a county commissioner for 14 years and has consistently voted against higher taxes. He cited the proposed jail and proposed parking structure as examples of unjustified spend ing which would be supported by new taxes. He favors the issues on one hand, but on the other hand he believes that the projects could be accomp lished more economically. “No doubt we have to have a jail,” he says, "but the prop osed cost of the building is not justified." A new jail here will cost $71 per square foot while, in other parts of the country, new jails with window expos ure in all cells and 50 per cent double occupancy cost only $34 per square foot. "Build ings are not designed with economics in mind,’’ Elliott charges. There’s no justifica tion in those costs.’’ Regarding the proposed city parking structure, of which Position No. 1 incumbent Nancy Hayward is a strong proponent, Elliott says the ex pense is excessive. According to Elliott, one piece of land which might be used will park 190 cars. To build a parking structure on that same land would cost $1.06 million and would park only 55 additional cars. Elliott says the need for 245 parking spots instead of 190 spots-to be paid for by a new tax or some other source of revenue-is unnecessary and wasteful. Elliott favors the Willamette Greenway, but he has voted against it because, he claims, the state is violating people’s rights by not paying land owners for their land. But own ers would not be able to build houses on their property or make obvious changes. The state could build a bike path, yet for such use, the state re fuses to pay. Elliott charges that the state is telling people what they can and can’t do with their own property without any compensation. “You just don’t take people's property away without just compensa tion,” he charges. “You just don't violate people's rights — you've got to be careful about that.” ,1 Frank Elliott Elliott opposes increasing the size of the board to five. “It all depends on who you ve got in there," he states. “The ideal is to elect qualified and dedi cated people,” he says, “and it won’t work any differently if you have 5 or 29 people." Ac cording to Elliott, five will cost the taxpayers more, but will not guarantee anything. Paop IQ Sw*tinn R
