McClerren: why I am running for council | Letter

The Charter Review Commission stated that part of their vision was to draw involvement from working folks and younger families. This was in contrast to the notion that leaders should have political experience, advanced degrees and institutional involvement. Our misguided love of “experts” has produced a steady stream of affluent, retired, partisan and self-interested officials.

The San Juan County Council is not meant to be run by experts, lawyers, developers, and special interest groups. The council should be staffed by individuals who represent the demographic, are easily accessible by the public, and have no conflicting private interests. A fair and nonpartisan government must be led by representatives, not activists.

I do not have personal funds or wealthy friends to finance a political campaign. But I do have a wealth of friends and a fund of concern which has been deposited with me by residents on Lopez, Orcas, Shaw, San Juan, Decatur, Center, Brown and Stewart Islands.

I do not have a banner of credentials and community service. I have honesty, sincerity, determination and compassion. I want badly to have the freedom to establish those credentials in service to my community.

I do not have connections and privileged alliances to call upon. But I am part of a community, which is thrilled to have a person which they can call upon to represent their concerns in the government. Because I have no alliances, I have no enemies. I have been warmly welcomed by individuals on opposite sides of heated disputes.

My self-interests are simple and transparent. I want to become a landowner and build a home for my family which will not be taken away when a landlord decides that it’s “time to sell” or the government decides that it is non-conforming. I want to raise my children in a small town with a rich education. I want them to have job opportunities here on the islands and to grow up knowing that their parent’s generation planned well to protect and nurture a vibrant future in the San Juan Islands.

Brian McClerren

Lopez Island

(Editor’s note: McClerren is running for the SJC Council District #3)

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