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Russ Weston over Mark Asmundson -Mayor
John McGarrity over ThereseHolm - Finance Director
RB Porter over Terry Bornemann -City Council
We can vote for Russ Weston, who impresses us as a naivenewcomer or the present mayor who is a competent sneak.I'll vote for the newcomer, Russ Weston. He will bring abreath of fresh air and honesty to our city hall.
Mark says he learned from his father, Tut, who was a Port ofBellingham commissioner for 35 years, how to be a public servant. Helearned well. Tut was the master of the back room deal. Publicparticipation was not part of Tut's vocabulary. Mark as mayor has astring of back room deals. It is his method of operating.
Mark professes great love for our city and the people. He is apolitician.
Mark speaks with soothing words - comforting and silky. But thenaway from the public he makes the deals - often for goals opposite ofwhat he smoothly told the public. He claims that he has helped createmore neighborhood organizations. Well, I know in Happy Valley weformed ours to fight against the secret deals that are destroying ourneighborhood. The best known, but not the only one, is the South Sidefire station. The destruction of the Barracks low cost housing was aback room deal.
Careful when you listen to Mark speak. He has the wordsdown like a snake oil salesman. But he has no scruples - he will thengo out and do the opposite.
Ie, his small and simple neighborhood grants. A $25,000 personalslush fund the mayor put past the council. This fund is used to payfor pet projects by the Mayor's friends. How bout a neighborhoodpicnic? Our tax dollars helped pay for one. A mural. A historicalstudy of one of the best well off neighborhoods in the city - Sehome.Some good things have been done such as some tree plantings. However,the mayor has abused this fund and the council should never havegiven it to him. It allows him to grant favors to friends. And buyoff possible opponents.
Russ Weston intends well, but during the campaign he tendsto paint himself into corners. He won't say how he feels about I-695because it is a state issue. Yet, we citizens feel comfortablelistening to the suggestions of our elected leaders. Russ need not beso careful. Mark plays with Russ at forums. He mocks Russ withouthelping us citizens learn more about important issues. Mark, as aseasoned campaigner, simply makes Russ look awkward on issues.
Many are concerned that Russ's inexperience will cause a problem.I have two answers for that. One; we had the same concern 4 years agoabout Pete Kremen, our county executive. He has done a good job. Two;we have an experienced city council that will be able to take itsrightful place as policy setter for our city if Russ is elected.
However, if Mark is re-elected, we can expect to watch ourneighborhoods to deteriorate, spending to be wasteful, and projectsto be "announced" to the public after they have been quietly puttogether behind closed doors. Our city will suffer.
We understand from reliable sources that Mark is planning aproperty tax increase this fall - to be presented to the councilafter the election. Our Happy Valley neighborhood plan has been puton hold for 5 months now. The next meeting is scheduled for after theelection. We citizens have repeatedly asked to see our draftneighborhood plan - and have been denied this. Why?
Ask Mark a substantial question and he is a master of sayingnothing. At the Herald forum, he was asked this. What has he donefor Lake Whatcom? Ahh, he sighs, so many things. Expand programs. Wehave learned so much. He feels the people who live around the lakeneed to know how to act, so he has worked on this. A TV show isplanned. Funding has been developed (yes, Mark throws money atproblems). Expanded water quality testing in the lake.
He does not say that the lake is so polluted that he will presentto the council after the election with a multimillion dollar projectmove the water intake into the third basin - further east in thelake. This will require raising our utility taxes. Nope, the mayortold us nothing about this.
The mayor has ignored Lake Whatcom water quality for years. Heeven now is doing what he can to trick the public and defeat theInitiative for protecting the lake. He refused to allow the city tohelp the initiative to be written correctly - now he uses the city topretend the initiative is illegal. The mayor wants to allow overdevelopment of Lake Whatcom and raise utility taxes to build moresewer pipes and treatment facilities. You won't catch the mayoractually admitting to this, though. He will fill your ears with sweetwords about teaching the folks by the lake to respect their lakemore.
Finally, there is the question of the Mayor breaking the law. Hegot very upset at the Herald Forum when he thought Russ has suggestedsuch. OK, Mark, I charge you with illegal activity.Specifically, your letter to the seller of the property for the SouthSide Fire Station - an illegal letter that allows him to save on hisFederal taxes. This letter was sent a month after the personwillingly sold the property to the city. You violated the law - andyou knew it.
Vote for Russ Weston. He is honest and intelligent. He willlearn. We will thrive.
JohnMcGarrity vs Teresa Holm
City Finance Director
Vote for John McGarrity. He will make agreat city finance director.
With Theresa Holm you may not know any moreabout city finances than you know now about Port finances.
We used to have a joke about how hard it is to get a job inBellingham. A person could have been the accountant who save New YorkCity and have moved to Bellingham for quality of life and then havetrouble getting a bookkeeping job here. Why? Because we in Bellinghamdon't seem to respect accomplishments that are not done here in thecounty. We just don't understand how the rest of the world ratesoutstanding people.
Such is the fate of John McGarrity. He actually did play a part inhelping save New York City from bankruptcy. He is a brilliantfinancial person. Yet, he is criticized by his opponent for not beingmore of an accountant. Hmmm - the position says "Finance Director".In her questioning of John McGarrity at the Herald Forum, she seemedto be trying to show that he was not qualified for the office.
Theresa Holm presents her accomplishments as governmentwork in our local area for the last 15 years. City of Bellingham,State Auditor in the Bellingham office and the Port of Bellingham.I've had some experience with her in these jobs. The experiences arenot good.
During the $4 million dollar KAP scandal (read $4 million loss)she was with the State Auditor's office in Bellingham and wasinvolved with communicating with the Port. She also advised the Porton issues. She now claims she was not involved in autiding the Portduring those wasteful years. Well, the real question is what was herrelationship with the Port. She was not forthright about that whenasked at the Herald Forum. There was plenty wrong with Port financeswhile Theresa was with the State Auditor. Shortly after that, thePort hired her.
Over the past 9 years, the Port's financial reporting has not beenwhat we should expect. Theresa has not shown us the kind of publicservice at the Port that Lynn Carpenter has shown us at thecity.
Theresa has had plenty of opportunities to improve Port financialcontrols. For starters, cost benefit studies for projects would bewelcome. Reporting that clearly showed the profit and loss of Portdepartments would be nice. Instead, no cost benefit studies are doneon major projects - or, if they are, they are not presented to thepublic so we can learn about them.
Folks, Theresa Holm would not be a Lynn Carpenter. By habit, shewill not be forthcoming to the public. Her record of not exposingPort records and of being blind to the KAP financial mess do notrecommend her for City Finance Director.
RB Porter ischoice over TerryBornemann
Bellingham City Council 5th Ward
Note: this is the only contested Bellingham city council seat.Three current members are running unopposed.
RB has finally come out swinging. At the Herald Forum, he showedthe courage that has been lacking in candidates and elected officialsfor years. He wants us to know that the value of Bellingham'sdrinking water needs to be protected. He proposes that if we canreplace each environmentally unfriendly GP job with a friendly one,and recover 80% of our water, should we not be open to a shut down ofGeorgia Pacific? He does not say we should shut down GP - justthat we should not fear it.
That, folks, is powerful and needed. GP on our waterfront is aarchaic sewer. Flying into Bellingham, it can be seen spewing itspolutants over Bellingham and into th Bay.
Terry Bornemann. He is a swell guy, but he will not addanything to our city council. Terry will not counter the Mayor -will not oppose the rest of the council. He mainly trys to show thatRB is not an involved in city hall doings. Terry is. Terry is sort oflike a Lodge member - he has served in many positions over the years.Many feel he now deserves a seat on the city council. Indeed, I thinkthat if he is elected, he will be an honest, open representative ofthe people. We will do OK.
But, with RB we have a chance to get a real action orientedperson on the council. RB is not afraid to disagree with others -he does not go along to get along. RB will stir up the pot - willkick the council awake - and we really need it. The last twoadditions to the council - Barbara Ryan and John Watts - have shownthemselves to be terribly boring and just team players with theMayor. We need an independent voice and we have a chance to get itwith RB.
When Terry has a chance to show independent thought he muffs it.On the Lake Whatcom initiative, he wants an impossible goal - thechance to change the initiative language. Of course, changing thelanguage is against state law. Yet this is the same stance beingtaken by present council members and the Mayor. Terry refuses to takea stand on the Initiative - neither for nor against. He says he hasnot made up his mind. Well, this is not what we want in a councilmember. RB shows real courage is supporting the initiative.
RB is taking a big chance going against GP on our waterfront. Andthis is what will make RB a good representative - he has backbone. Weneed that on the city council.
Terry found the report disturbing and very interesting. But he isleery. He wants more information. Sort of like listening to him speakabout the water initiative. Terry talks but tells us nothing. He ison the planning committee for WWU's expansion plans. He voicesconcern that this expansion not hurt the Happy Valley neighborhood,but on the committee he goes along with Western's plans to devastateHappy Valley. Terry's Sehome neighborhood is safe.
RB even has the courage to say that our local WTA bus system is aslousy as any you will find. He is right - and those who need to usethe busses all agree. In fact, all the folks who don't use the busesknow that is why they don't use the buses.
Vote for RB Porter. We need some life on the council. RB will stirthings up.
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