Editor’s note: The Reporter asked two questions of the candidates running for City Council in Black Diamond. The candidates are: Position No. 2 Melissa C. Oglesbee and Michelle Young; Position No. 4 Ed Hanrahan and Erin Rose Stout.
Position 2
Melissa C. Oglesbee
Question No. 1
In your view, what is one of the top issues voters should consider in this election?
First and foremost, all members of the Black Diamond council need to return to a trusting, professional relationship between themselves, our citizens and city staff restoring civility and order to our city council. The residents, business, city staff, police and fire departments deserve a functioning City Council that protects our city services and places values of our community over their own personal objectives.
I feel we could lose the treasured history of our rural community if we don’t properly manage our city government. Some of our current council members have disrupted the political process and put us in legal jeopardy due to their actions, this is unacceptable and must stop!
As we face the challenges posed by the development occurring in our city, we must carefully monitor agreements in place and see that there is a high level of accountability. I believe regular communication between council members to city staff and developer, in combination with input from residents, are key elements towards a successful city. Our city staff has the education and experience to ensure the development is abiding by the law and our tax dollars are being used wisely. Transportation will be the biggest issues as our community grows, I will work to ensures that safety is our top priority and do all I possibly can to push for improvements to the flow of traffic!
Question No. 2
Why are you the best candidate for this office? What are the skills you will bring to the office and how will those skills serve the public if you are elected?
I have been involved in the Black Diamond community since 2006 when my husband and I bought our first house. Currently, I volunteer with special events throughout the year hosted at our community center and donate my time as a greeter with my husband, Shawn, at the Black Diamond Historical Museum. I’m most proud to have served as the director of our Labor Days celebration for the past five years.
What makes me the best candidate, I actively attend our City Council meetings, participate in our political forums and frequent our local businesses and communicate with our citizen. I utilize my leadership and people skills in our community today. I’ve built strong relationships with our current businesses owners, work to protect and maintain our rich history and always try to make a positive difference in our community. My career has provided me with many opportunities to better the future of me and my family and improve my leadership skills. I’m educated, strong willed but always willing to listen and learn.
When I think of what it means to be part of a small town, its community and I want to be someone who is always involved. I strive to not only be involved as a volunteer, but someone who is engaged with the community. You can say that I’m in love with this city and the people who live here. I would be honored to be your next city council member.
Michelle Young
Question No. 1
In your view, what is one of the top issues voters should consider in this election?
We all need to get past negative politics and start honest conversations about the future of our city.
Most residents do not support the over-sized YarrowBay/Oakpointe developments as they were approved seven years ago. That development agreement expires after 15 years, so we are about half way through the life of that approval.
Only 15 percent of the development has been clear cut and graded. There are many future decisions to be made and reviews to be done, including a required traffic impact plan. There are literally hundreds of implementation and enforcement decisions ahead.
Setting the course for our city takes real research, passion and focus. We need leadership that is calm and respectful. We need the best technical and legal help that we can afford, and we need it to be unbiased and empowering.
The energy and money that has been spent to stifle the reforms that the public voted for would have been better spent on defending and improving our quality of life.
Holding developers accountable must be more than a slogan. It requires decisive actions. And that’s what is required to make City Hall accountable too.
Your vote is one of those decisive actions.
Question No. 2
Why are you the best candidate for this office? What are the skills you will bring to the office and how will those skills serve the public if you are elected?
We need new leadership in City Hall. This is the only way that we can reverse the divisive politics of the past. My opponent supports the status quo that has failed us.
As a 15 year real estate professional, I know the challenge of managing and controlling growth and development. As a software engineer I know the value of a diverse workforce full of challenging ideas. As a community volunteer, I know the value of bringing people together in positive ways.
But above all, I know that this election is not about me. This election is about protecting the quality of life of our unique rural town.
Our future does not have to be one of traffic jams, crowded schools, higher taxes, and a degraded environment. That’s not a “done deal”, and we should never vote for anyone who believes that it is.
Let’s pull together. We can do this.
Position 4
Ed Hanrahan
Question No. 1
In your view, what is one of the top issues voters should consider in this election?
We all agree that public safety should be our city’s top priority. Politics should not interfere with police and fire services.
But the issue that really defines the candidates is how we control and manage growth. Every day my wife and I try to get out onto state Highway 169. It is unsafe now, and more traffic will only make it worse. With no money available for decades to expand that highway, it is unreasonable to quadruple the size of our city.
The common sense of the residents of Black Diamond is that the Yarrow Bay/Oakpointe development isn’t right for our rural town.
Do we need to let a decision that City Hall made seven years ago ruin our quality of life? The answer is no.
Our city has the authority to take action to protect our citizens from unacceptable impacts caused by these huge developments.
– We can insist on an up to date transportation plan, and use that plan to reduce traffic impacts.
– We can insist on applying strict environmental controls to protect our lakes, streams and wetlands.
– And we can refuse to approve taxpayer subsidies, variances and changes that make the developments an economic liability.
Question No. 2
Why are you the best candidate for this office? What are the skills you will bring to the office and how will those skills serve the public if you are elected?
I am optimistic that we can still control and manage huge developments that threaten our quality of life. I do not accept the notion that traffic jams, higher taxes and a degraded environment are “a done deal.”
My optimism is based on the best aspects of Black Diamond, not its worst. Our city has historic roots in family, faith, and hard work. We are respectful of each other. We listen. We pitch in and help.
That’s what we need right now. Judy Baxley is running for mayor and I like what she wrote the other day: “Alternative ideas are opportunities, not threats.”
As a manufacturing manager, my work life is all about considering alternatives. We need to open city hall to as many technical and policy perspectives as we can. We don’t have to settle for simply accepting whatever is served up by the protectors of the status quo.
Your vote for new leadership will restore respect in City Hall. Respect between the mayor and the council. Respect for rules and standards of conduct that have stood the test of time. And respect for public participation and open government.
Erin Rose Stout
Question No. 1
In your view, what is one of the top issues voters should consider in this election?
The most important issue facing Black Diamond voters is the contention on the City Council that slows or stops the work of the city. Our residents deserve to have the council’s attention directly on the business of the city. Instead, valuable time is spent jockeying for position and bickering over the order of the agenda. The City Council needs to act in a spirit of cooperation and civility. City government should work hard to find agreeable solutions to problems.
Every department of the city has important issues that come before the council. Most issues are met with suspicion and delay. The Planning Commission has not met for most of this year, to work on the Capital Improvement Plan, because the City Council will not allow the traffic portion to be completed.
Development pays its own way as outlined in the Development Agreements. Environmental standards set by the state are in place and are upheld at every step. Having a master plan allows for a beautiful and vibrant community which encompasses the lovely existing city. We need carefully planned growth. This is preferred over urban sprawl that allows growth to occur without an overall plan.
Question No. 2
Why are you the best candidate for this office? What are the skills you will bring to the office and how will those skills serve the public if you are elected?
I am the best candidate because I take a realistic view of the city’s future. I have attended almost every City Council meeting and many work study sessions for nearly a year.
I have met with members of the city staff to show my appreciation for their work, listen to concerns, and hear solutions to problems. City staff, and emergency workers need to be supported and appreciated for all they do to keep this city running and safe.
I am an excellent manager of my family finances. Tax dollars matter and the finances of this city need to continue to be used wisely for real benefits to the residents. Maximizing every dollar in the budget is my priority.
My opponent’s Voter’s Pamphlet statement implies that growth is not being managed, environmental standards are not strong or enforced, spending and contracting is out of control, the city budget is out of balance, and the developer is being subsidized by taxpayers. None of this is true!
Systems are in place to responsibly manage all details of our city government. We just need a Council that will work for the city, not against it. I will bring a dependable, common sense presence to the Council Chambers.
