ISSUES & CONCERNS

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My time in county government and K-12 education provided the relevant work experience to understand the complexities and nuances of town government. This is important for many reasons, not least of which is that only someone who has been through the trials and tribulations of working for the public acquires the knowledge and confidence necessary to serve as your town chair. 

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If you want to be a successful town chair say “we” not “I.”  I will not be a town chair who takes all the credit and gives demands instead of instructions and cooperation. I will be a leader who demonstrate an outward focus, considering the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors of others. 

I ask you to use a simple test called the “I Versus We Test” to evaluate whether or not a leader is self-centered. To use the test, listen to the leader. Does he or she use “I” or “we” more often? 

More importantly as your town chair, is it “we” when receiving praise and “I” when receiving blame, or does the person use “I” when receiving praise and “we” when receiving blame? This will tell you whether a leader is “team first” or “self-first.”

The old saying “The buck stops here!” is the heart and soul of how our character is shaped. My character has been and will continue to be formed every time I face a defining moment that challenges me to sort through my core values and principles. 

I understand not everyone will share the same vision and may express differing views. Possibly in a very challenging manner. Experience has taught me to remain positive, respectful, and professional. Good moral character comes from a person’s ethics and virtues that they believe in and maintain in their daily decisions. 

The old saying “The buck stops here!” is the heart and soul of how our character is shaped. My character has been and will continue to be formed every time I face a defining moment that challenges me to sort through my core values and principles. 

I understand not everyone will share the same vision and may express differing views. Possibly in a very challenging manner. Experience has taught me to remain positive, respectful, and professional. Good moral character comes from a person’s ethics and virtues that they believe in and maintain in their daily decisions. he safety and welfare of our citizens and those who visit are the most important. County   supervisors must place trust in our county department heads and elected officials to develop budgets which provide staff the resources to provide county services. Mandated programs and services, such as law enforcement, judicial and social services to name a few, are of high priority. Yet, non-mandated programs and services provide significant benefits to the county.    

In July 2022 the Pledge was removed from the meeting agenda by Mr. Knutson. When asked at the August meeting why he removed the Pledge, Mr. Knutson said “He wasn’t feeling it.” 

I believe our Crescent Town Board and those in attendance recite the Pledge to instill a sense of patriotism and to show pride and loyalty to our country. Under no circumstance should the Pledge be removed from our monthly meeting agendas. 

The town chair position for a town the size of Crescent was never intended to be a fulltime, paid position. It is a part time position with a strong sense of community service. The town chair stipend/salary has been increased from $12,500 to $13,500 for 2023. 

During my tenure as a county board supervisor, supervisors received a meeting stipend and mileage for the monthly county board meeting, assigned committee of jurisdiction meetings, and formally approved conferences. I served on four standing committees and a number of ad hoc committees. The current town chair compensation is over three times the compensation of county board supervisors. Attendance at other committee meetings or governmental body meetings were not reimbursable. 

To the best of my knowledge there is no town chair job description or town ordinance addressing appropriate reimbursable expenses for meetings and travel. The Town of Crescent needs to formally develop and adopt guidelines in this area. 

Currently the Town Planning Commission is in the process of updating the Comprehensive Land Use Plan. A major topic under consideration is rezoning the Town.  Members of the  because the Commission believe there are no restrictions on zoning types throughout the Town.  They have a goal to "Identify our cultural, historical and archeological sites for future designations, markings and preservation." and to "Rezone the town so that there are distinctions in areas where there needs to be some protection."

The Town previously conducted an advisory zoning referendum and the result was overwhelmingly in support of general zoning.  It is my position prior to any rezoning of the Town, an advisory zoning referendum is placed on the November 2024 ballot.  Why November 2024?  Because the November presidential elections have the greatest Town voter turnout.