Piercy points to her experience as state legislator in her
willingness to listen to all points of view, to have an open door,
and to reach compromise on the tough issues.
In an April 18 R-G article, Green said
the financial stability of the county is his
No. 1 priority. Ringer defines his priorities
as: fiscal stability; affordable recreational
opportunities for low- and moderate-
income residents; and environmental pro-
tection.
In terms of how his approach and phi-
losophy differ from those of Green, Ringer
says, “Where I differ most from Green
philosophically is my recognition that eco-
nomic development and ecological protec-
tion are inseparable. We cannot have a
healthy economy without a healthy envi-
ronment (in fact, the success of my own
business depends on the satisfaction of
both objectives).”
Ringer also disagrees with funding
public safety programs by eliminating
essential social, environmental and recre-
ational services. Instead, he supports the
Board’s decision to reduce County spend-
ing by 9 percent across the board, so that
Lane County can retain some level of
access for residents who depend on these
programs.
In the past four years, Ringer notes that
his opponent fought to turn community
farms into sand and gravel pits, advocated
expanding the urban growth boundary to
annex more property, and nearly doubled
his salary to $70,000, or twice the median
wage in Lane County.
“Yet,” Ringer says, “15 percent of our
residents continue to live in poverty; 8 per-
cent of our workers are unemployed, and
our economic development strategy lacks
imagination and a coherent vision. We
publicly subsidize corporate relocations
and energy-consumptive business prac-
tices, while we marginalize local business
owners and workers, and ignore the attrac-
tiveness of Lane County’s ‘green’ reputa-
tion for meaningful, long-term job cre-
ation and environmental conservation.”
Ringer finds it even more troubling that
Lane County faces a $4 million budget
shortfall this fiscal year, and commission-
ers must now make difficult choices about
which functions county government will
provide. He says, “Because of repeated
voter opposition to additional taxes,
Commissioner Green argues that we must
eliminate essential social, environmental
and recreational services to maintain pub-
lic safety alone. I believe otherwise …
[recognizing] that our county parks, social
programs, and planning services are as
critical to our community’s public health
as are the number of deputies or jail beds
we have available.”
We like what Ringer has to say and the
alternatives he’s proposing to the status
quo. For these reasons, we endorse Ringer.
Lane County Commission,
Position 5
Don Hampton
Don Hampton’s appointment last sum-
mer to the east Lane County vacancy left
by commissioner-turned-UO-law-profes-
sor Tom Lininger was a smart choice. An
even smarter choice is to keep Hampton
on the job.
Lane County Sheriff
Russel Burger
Don Hampton
Hampton is a commissioner who
understands how good, old-fashioned
common sense intersects with things like
managing urban growth and protecting
prime farmland. “He wants to build
smarter, not bigger,” says County
Commissioner Bill Dwyer. It is this com-
bination that speaks both to the needs of
his largely rural constituency and to those
non-ruralites in Lane County opposed to
sprawl and big box store syndrome.
Hampton supports family wage jobs;
better law enforcement; low property
taxes; lean, balanced budgets; preservation
of senior, veteran, abused children and
rural clinic services; balanced land use
policy that respects private property rights,
rural identity and natural resources. Don
Hampton is the only logical choice for
Position 5.
Sheriff Jan Clements might have
caught a couple of people by surprise
when he decided not to run for reelection
this year. Had there been more notice, we
might know more about sheriff candidates
like Louis Gomez, chief of police in
Oakridge. We like what Gomez has to say
so far, and are interested in his approach to
the sheriff’s position. But for this particu-
lar election, EW endorses Russ Burger.
Burger seems to have the clearest
understanding of the sheriff’s position
from both the law enforcement and correc-
tions perspective. He is also familiar with
the budgetary constraints, and was actual-
ly brought in by Clements because of his
ability and willingness to work with a
wide range of law enforcement agencies.
Mayor of Eugene
Kitty Piercy
Kitty Piercy enjoys
broad support in Eugene.
In
Her years as a teacher,
Focus
state legislator and leader
of many civic organizations
make her a natural for the job of mayor.
Citing her position on a roundtable that
includes both business-oriented Lane
Metro Partnership and environmental
group 1000 Friends of Oregon, Piercy says
she’s qualified to bring all types of people
of varying viewpoints together to discuss
issues, reach compromise, and move for-
ward.
Piercy’s opponent, Nancy Nathanson,
u
Kitty Piercy
VOTE
VOTE 2004
Primary
Election
May 18,
2004
Endorsements at a Glance
A quick look at EW’s picks
for the May 18 Primary
Election. Unopposed candi-
dates are not included.
U.S. President
John Kerry (D)
Secretary of State
Bill Bradbury (D),
Fred Granum (R)
House District 7
Shirley Cairns (D)
House District 8
Paul Holvey (D)
Judge, Supreme Court, 4
Rives Kistler
Judge, Supreme Court
Position 7
William Riggs
Judge, Court of Appeals
Position 7
Robert Wollheim
Lane County Commission,
Position 4
Greg Ringer
Lane County Commission,
Position 5
Don Hampton
Lane County Sheriff
Russel Burger
Mayor of Eugene
Kitty Piercy
Eugene City Council,
Ward 1
Bonny Bettman
Eugene City Council,
Ward 2
Betty Taylor
Eugene City Council,
Ward 7
Andrea Ortiz
EWEB,
Wards 1 & 8 Position
John Simpson
MAY 6, 2004 13