WHIDBEY NEWS-TIMES: Commissioner candidates set distinct priorities
Jessie Stensland profiles the candidates:
Tim Hazelo, a Republican who lives on North Whidbey, is challenging incumbent Commissioner Janet St. Clair, a Democrat who lives on Camano Island. They are running for the District 3 seat, which represents North Whidbey and Camano Island.
They Said It
Tim Hazelo
Yet he said his stance on the larger, federal issues like abortion shouldn’t be a litmus test for candidates for local government positions. Claiming that most people have lost their trust in government, he said he wants to help remedy that be emphasizing and supporting the fundamentals of government, such as infrastructure and public safety.
“It’s those simple things we can improve on,” he said, “and I think I’m the guy to do it.”
“Here locally, where the rubber meets the road, where I’m going to take charge, is in promoting public safety and promoting our police force and sheriff’s force into the modern era,” he said.
[On reducing regulation:] “I want to figure out what we can do to cut the red tape,” he said.
Janet St. Clair
“I prefer local government,” she said. “I don’t have a desire to be in a different level of government because I like the connection to the people.”
St. Clair… said her top priorities are housing affordability and access to health care, including mental health care. She said she championed state funding for an innovative behavioral health pilot project and continues to be an advocate for better mental health and substance abuse treatment.
She said she understands the sentiments of Freeland residents who are worried that the facility [the Harbor Inn, which is being purchased by Low Income Housing Institute for affordable housing and a shelter] will bring crime and grime into the community. But she researched the issue and found that studies have shown that such facilities do not, in fact, cause the kinds of problems people are concerned about.
St. Clair said she is guided by both the data and research, but also by a desire to provide services to everyone, including those in need.
