2018 election
october18
2018
3
An Opinion: Candidate Endorsements
By Scott Laird
Vernonians have a full slate of
local candidates on their election ballots
that should be arriving in the mail any
day now, with three candidates running
for Mayor and four candidates running
for two City Council seats.
Right now Vernonia’s City gov-
ernment is running smoothly, and for the
first time we have stability at the City
Administrator position after years of
having a revolving door. City Adminis-
trator Josette Mitchell has built a strong
and capable staff around her. The City is
putting the final touches on the decades-
in-the-making Sewer Upgrade Project.
Plans and funding for the Senior Center/
Food Bank project have been secured
and that project will hopefully break
ground next spring. The current Council
has developed a good working relation-
ship and understands with each other.
I appreciate the people who
step forward and volunteer to run for
elected office in our small community,
at least those who run for the right rea-
sons. It’s generally a thankless job that
often forces you to find compromise and
make difficult decisions that are going to
leave you unpopular with half the citi-
zens. It’s a big responsibility to carry the
weight of the community on your shoul-
ders and the decisions that are made in
those Council chambers can have lasting
consequences. Setting policy that will
benefit the community as a whole can be
tricky business. It’s a time consuming
job that requires reading and research,
long discussions with fellow Councilors
so that everyone has a chance to have
their opinion heard, and attendance at
meeting after meeting.
The wheels of government turn
slowly and it takes patience and a will-
ingness to roll up your sleeves, and do
your due diligence when working on
city projects. Members of the Council
need to be flexible, sensible, and reason-
able. It can be frustrating, time consum-
ing, and in the end, you don’t always get
your way.
The flip side is that serving on
the City Council does have its rewards.
It’s about being part of something big-
ger than yourself. Knowing that you’ve
helped your community solve a tough is-
sue, find an answer for a citizen in need,
or see a project through to completion, is
a special feeling, and for some people it
can be a worthy endeavor.
I believe that first off, potential
candidates should take this responsibil-
ity seriously, as should we, the voters be-
ing asked to choose between these can-
didates. I also believe candidates need
a strong understanding of how our City
operates on a day-to-day basis, a clear
picture of the current projects - either
underway or under consideration, and
have a good understanding of the goals
and expectations of the Council and the
community at large. They need to have
shown the ability to work in a group set-
ting, and be able to put aside any per-
sonal agendas or petty grievances. And
they need to be able to listen – to their
constituents, to the staff at City Hall, and
to their other Council members.
Vernonia’s Voice Endorsement for
Mayor: Jill Hult
Jill is a current City Councilor
who appears ready to take this next big
leadership step. Her background and ex-
perience, both in and outside of Vernonia
city government is solid. To me she is
clearly the best candidates for this po-
sition. Jill has chaired the City Budget
Committee. She has work experience in
economic development, social services,
and flood recovery – all valuable experi-
ences when it comes to working in city
government – and she has developed
good connections at the County level.
She’s a longtime Vernonia resident who
understands the need for limited growth,
but also the need to preserve the small
town culture that is so important here.
As a City Councilor we’ve seen her
grow into, and learn the nuances of, the
position. She clearly understands the
current state of the City, and has a good
working knowledge of priorities and is-
sues. She understands and respects the
value and importance of both City staff
and the Citizen Advisory Committees in
helping the Council guide the City. She
has put in the time and worked her way
up the leadership ladder, and is ready for
this next responsibility.
Rick Hobart is a longtime Ver-
nonia resident, a volunteer with the
Lions Club, and a heck of a nice guy.
Rick’s work with the Lions, heading up
the Dewey Pool renovation, was a huge
asset to the community and the City.
He has currently been volunteering to
beautify the community with the newly
formed Green Team. These are all ad-
mirable qualities and endeavors. Rick
is running for the right reasons, to give
back to a community he obviously loves.
What Rick lacks is any real previous in-
volvement at the City level. Rick would
be a great candidate for a position on a
Citizen Advisory Committee where he
could better learn the inner workings of
City projects and how City Hall operates
and functions.
I don’t have a lot to say about
David Sterner, the third candidate for
Mayor. David is running his campaign
on one issue, a complaint he filed with
the Oregon Government Ethics Com-
mission, which has already been settled.
He’s had almost no past community
involvement. David declined to par-
ticipate in either the candidate question-
naire Vernonia’s Voice sent out or the
Meet the Candidates forum. Just a quick
read of his statement in the voters’ pam-
phlet tells you all you need to know – he
has no real ideas about what he would do
as Mayor of Vernonia, at least none he’s
been willing to share with voters.
Vernonia’s Voice Endorsement for
City Council: Dale Webb and Mike
Seager
Dale Webb is probably one
of the more experienced and qualified
Council candidates in Vernonia in a long
time. A longtime Vernonia resident who
was born and raised here, Dale under-
stands the people in this community.
He’s spent the last eight years serving on
the Public Works Committee, and was
instrumental in the City’s revamping
of water and sewer rates, a project that
has taken years of determined work to
accomplish – and Dale was right in the
thick of it. He also served on the Bud-
get Committee last year, so he has some
understanding of City finances. Dale
brings a vast amount of experience on
other boards and committees. He has ex-
pressed a pragmatic and restrained view
of City operations. He sees the role of
Councilor as a steward of the taxpayers’
money. He is an excellent candidate and
the community would be lucky to have
him sitting on the Council.
Mike Seager is a current City
Councilor who has served as the Air-
port Manager for the City for several
decades. As Councilor he has served
as liaison to the Parks Committee so he
has a working knowledge of that depart-
ment and the issues there. He’s familiar
with the City Budget, with Public Works
projects, and has a good working rela-
tionship with his fellow Councilors. He
leads quietly, but hasn’t been afraid to
take a strong stand when he needs to.
I would like to see Mike share more of
Publisher and Managing Editor
Scott Laird
503-367-0098
scott@vernoniasvoice.com
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his knowledge when campaigning and
it’s hard to get a clear read on why he is
running or what his ideas are. The cur-
rent Council has accomplished a lot, so
I’m inclined to keep the makeup of the
Council as much the same as possible.
J.R. Allen says his construction
background and experience would be an
asset to the Council and I don’t disagree.
Unfortunately he doesn’t have other real
leadership experience to point to that
qualifies him for a seat on the City Coun-
cil. He’s been a vocal presence on so-
cial media, advocating for volunteerism
within the community, and has put his
money where his mouth is, helping lead
continued on page 5
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