The race is on
Published 10:55 am Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Where once there was six, now there will be three.
The special filing period for candidates for three new San Juan County Council positions was held last week from Dec. 12 to 14. The Special Election will be held to fill the positions created by the passage of Proposition 1 in the November election, reducing the six-person council to three.
Prop. 1 was one of three propositions devised by the Charter Review Commission and passed in the election. Prop. 2 replaces the executive county administrator position with a county manager and Prop. 3 mandates that all county council meetings are open to the public.
Council positions that more than two candidates file for will be narrowed to two candidates in a county-wide “primary” election held Feb. 12. The winners of that election, plus the candidates for any positions for which two or fewer candidates file, will be elected in a county-wide “general” election held April 23.
Rick Hughes, Lisa Byers and Greg Ayers filed for District 2, which includes Orcas Island, Waldron Island, Blakely Island, and surrounding smaller islands.
Here’s a Q&A with the candidates.
Greg Ayers
Ayers has extensive business experience in the medical device industry and brings a multi-decade career of operating over a dozen privately financed biotech companies. He is an elected commissioner of the Eastsound Water and Sewer District and serves in a variety of volunteer positions. Ayers holds degrees in biomedical engineering and medicine, is a recognized expert in the cause and treatment of abnormal heart rhythms, and has developed many medical technologies including defibrillators, pacemakers, and health monitors. He and his wife Patricia live on Orcas Island.
Sounder: In your recent letter to the editor you said you said you were still considering running, what made you decide to file?
GA: I have been on a whirlwind tour, meeting people that contacted me, listening to their concerns, and explaining how I would address them. People called and emailed me afterwards telling me that focusing on problem solving and values rather than politics, rang true with them. My decision was made.
Sounder: Why are you running for this position?
GA: I am passionate about giving back to this community that I love. I am driven by the opportunity to improve our island life and helping neighbors, while preserving the culture that we enjoy. I am very good at solving problems and I want to use my business experience to help meet our community’s needs. I feel I can use my skills to deliver quality county services and efficient government.
Sounder: What are the greatest concerns currently facing the county?
GA: Financial “health” is the largest problem facing our county. Implementing new CAO regulations, updating the Shoreline plan using a common sense approach, while maintaining the rural culture of the islands that we all treasure will be some of the challenges. These are but a few concerns I see.
Sounder: What are your solutions to those problems?
GA: Finding appropriate solutions requires problem definition, un-biased data collection, and full evaluation of potential solutions. Budget cuts are not a simple solution, but my approach is: Everything comes OFF the table, then we ADD expenses back only when required by law or the if the County is the best provider of the service. We must also look at increasing revenue via expanding our base. Facilitating the “cottage high-tech” industry and “high tech tourism” are examples. I am convinced that with my organizational, business and governmental skills that I can guide us through these challenges.
Sounder: What are the strengths and weaknesses of our current government?
GA: The strength of our current government is the experience and potential of our county council and county personnel. A “weakness” has been difficulty setting clear policy and working with the county manager in an effective and transparent manner.
Sounder: How do you think the three-member council will work/ or not and why?
GA: Is this a rhetorical question? It must work. A three-member council is the government in most Washington counties. Success depends on the abilities of the people who serve in those positions. Competent council members, such as myself, will assure it works.
Lisa Byers
Byers is the executive director of OPAL Community Land Trust. Byers has a bachelor’s degree from Vassar College, and a Masters in Business Administration in public and nonprofit management from Boston University.
She has lived on Orcas Island since 1994, initially working as the program assistant and land steward for the Land Bank. Together with her partner, Laurie Gallo, she has helped raise two daughters, graduates of the Orcas Island School District, who are now in college and graduate school.
Sounder: What are the greatest concerns currently facing the county?
LB: County government must stabilize its budget. We need to diversify our economy while respecting the quality of our environment.
Sounder: What are your solutions to those problems?
LB: Regarding the budget, the council needs to lead productive conversation: What do citizens expect from their county government? How do they want to pay for those expectations? We need a fiscally responsible plan that includes council members working together with elected officials and department heads to conduct a countywide review of capital facilities. We need to determine if the county could gain efficiencies, and thereby reduce costs.
To diversify our economy, the council needs to work with representatives of all local business sectors to reduce barriers to their success, and to promote opportunities, such as OPALCO’s efforts to bring broadband to the county. We need to insure that farmers are able to work the land and get their products to market-both locally and on the mainland.
A top environmental concern at this time is the proposed coal export terminal in the Cherry Point Aquatic Reserve near Bellingham. It is a threat to human safety and the Salish Sea. We need to work with Canadians and other communities to stop construction of this terminal in our backyard.
Sounder: What are the strengths and weaknesses of our current government?
LB: The strengths of our current government are the people who work for and volunteer for the county. We have incredibly talented and dedicated staff and citizens. The weakness is that departments compete for scarce resources, making it difficult to build a unified team that is focused on serving the citizens in the most efficient and effective manner.
Sounder: How do you think the three-member council will work/ or not and why?
LB: I think the three-member council has the ability to work well. There is a chance for greater unity and under the new structure for the county manager, the council and the manager are more likely to work as a team, setting clear direction for staff and citizens.
Rick Hughes
Hughes and his wife Marlace manage Ray’s Pharmacy. He also runs a property management group; serves as treasurer of the Orcas Island Farmers’ Market Association, is a board member of Eastsound Planning and Review Committee; volunteers as little league coach; and serves as the PTSA co-president. Prior to moving to Orcas, Hughes was an executive with ESPN.
His family has been on Orcas since 1944 and Marlace is a fourth generation Orcas Island resident. Hughes was elected to the six-person council in the position #4 (Orcas West) in the November election.
Sounder: Why are you running for this position?
RH: My pledge to the community is to operate a fair, honest and transparent government, to work for better communications and interaction between county employees and the public, and to have county government serve as an aid to the public. In short, to give the government back to the community.
Sounder: What are the greatest concerns currently facing the county?
RH: Economic development and jobs. What the recession that began during 2007 has shown this generation of San Juan County islanders is that an economy based primarily on tourism and construction is hit hard with any prolonged economic downturn and takes longer to recover.
Sounder: What are your solutions to those problems?
RH: We need to encourage development of alternate industries, along with expansion of agricultural based export business and growth of agro/eco-tourism to provide opportunities to county citizens that can help mitigate the impact of deep recessions. Due to the cost of shipping to and from the islands we should look for industries that are less hard goods based and more knowledge based.
Sounder: What are the strengths and weaknesses of our current government?
RH: One of the strengths of government here in the islands is that it really feels like “We The People.” Virtually everyone knows someone who works for government in some capacity and for the majority of people this helps dispel any “use vs. them” feelings. The government has also shown the capacity to adapt and respond to economic changes. Some could argue over the magnitude of the changes, but that doesn’t negate the efforts of our neighbors employed by the county. The government could develop a greater sense of urgency and a stronger customer service focus. It should continuously evaluate its processes to insure that are sufficiently meeting the needs of the people and not “just the way they’ve always done it.”
Sounder: How do you think the three-member council will work/ or not and why?
RH: With the right people, the three-member council will work like it did in the past and like it does in 33 other counties in the state. The difference is that there will be less minds to share to work load and tough decision making. As I love to multi-task, the new situation really excites me as I have wanted to help make change for my community and this is my opportunity.
Other candidates
Brian McClerren and Jamie Stephens filed for candidacy for District 3 encompassing Lopez Island, Shaw Island, Decatur Island, and surrounding smaller islands.
Marc Forlenza, Bob Jarman and Lovel Pratt filed for District 1, which includes San Juan Island and surrounding smaller islands.
For more info about the elections, contact the Elections Office at www.sanjuanco.com/elections or contact the Elections staff at 378-3357.
