PORT ANGELES — The four candidates for City Council position 2 debated city finance, economic development and use of the vacant Rayonier mill site, among other issues at City Hall last week.
The forum on Thursday, held by the League of Women Voters of Clallam County, was the second for the candidates — Rick Burton, Max Mania, Edna Petersen and Peter Ripley — and the first since primary ballots were mailed Wednesday.
60 people attended
The forum, attended by about 60 people, provided candidates with one of the few last opportunities to present the subtle and not-so subtle differences among them before primary ballots are returned by Aug. 18.
To begin with some of the latter:
• Ripley protested unfunded mandates from the federal government, and said each council member should forfeit monthly compensation from the city every other month — $650 for the mayor, $600 for the deputy mayor, and $550 for other council members — in order to help offset those costs, especially when dealing with storm water.
The self-described conservative and publisher of the news Web site The Port Angeles Journal also reiterated another campaign pledge to oppose any closed-door meetings that he thinks does not comply with state open government law.
Business experience
• Petersen, owner of the Necessities and Temptations gift shop in downtown Port Angeles and a former City Council member, said her business and council experience prepared her for handling the city’s budget.
Petersen served on the City Council from July 2006 through 2007 after being appointed following former City Council member Lauren Erickson’s resignation.
She was defeated November 2007 by present City Council member Dan Di Guilio.
Petersen said the local economy needs to be able to adapt to the rapidly changing world and emphasized retaining businesses that are already here, along with attracting new ventures.
• Mania emphasized parks and the arts as key to Port Angeles’ economic future.
Mania also repeated several times that he will be a “progressive and forward-thinking” council member.
He claimed in his opening statement that he will spend his campaign contributions by donating a chunk of it to three local nonprofit organizations and the rest on ads in the Peninsula Daily News every couple of weeks that will announce how much he has raised for those organizations.
No money will be spent on other forms of advertising, Mania said.
• Burton separated himself from the rest of the pack by criticizing The Gateway transit center and creation of the Port Angeles Harbor-Works Development Authority, a public development authority formed in May 2008 to direct redevelopment of the Rayonier site on the Port Angeles waterfront, and therefore, the level of environmental cleanup.
Rayonier mill site
It has been a state Department of Ecology cleanup site since 2000.
The Rayonier site is contaminated with pockets of PCBs, dioxin, arsenic and other toxins left by the pulp mill, which operated there for 68 years before closing in 1997. In 2000, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency called the site” moderately contaminated,” perhaps 2 or 3 on a scale of 10.
Both the city and the Port of Port Angeles loaned the public development authority $150,000 for start-up costs.
Harbor-Works has since asked for $500,000 more from each entity.
Burton said money spent on The Gateway could have been better used on other improvements to downtown, and in referring to Harbor-Works, said, “The idea of Harbor-Works was good, but the planning, the planning I don’t think was good at all.”
As the one candidate without previous experience on community board or organizations, the Nippon paper mill employee claimed he will be free from influence from special interests.
During the debate, Burton asked five of the 16 questions to be repeated, and passed on a question regarding what needs to be done to maintain or improve the city’s quality of life.
“I’m stumped,” he responded.
Balancing budget
When it comes to balancing the city’s budget, the candidates were in agreement in that it’s not going to get any easier in the coming years.
Petersen said cuts will have to be made.
“The most you can do is listen to the staff and what they are telling you are the needs of each department,” she said.
Ripley said that the city’s infrastructure is a high priority.
He said he would make no cuts to city and fire services.
“I would never touch those budgets,” he said.
Mania held up a copy of the 2009 budget and said that he is slowly and surely making his way through it.
“I will give my full attention and do my best,” he said.
“You will always know where I’m coming from.”
Burton said he would cut spending and make the city more efficient, adding that he is not going to make any promises beyond that.
“What I say I’m going to do is as simple as that,” he said.
Each of the candidates said that more needs to be done to transition the local economy away from the extraction of natural resources.
“That is pretty much on its way out,” Burton said.
“We need to come up with some other type of industry in Port Angeles.”
He added that tourism will remain important and that more needs to be done to attract retail and wholesale stores so residents don’t have to travel to Sequim or Silverdale to shop.
Different tourism types
Mania said that promoting eco- and art-tourism will become more important, along with attracting retirees.
“We can have an identity as a farm area, as an arts area, a place to go to Canada . . . a place to recreate, a place to start a business, a place to raise your kids,” he said.
Mania added that there needs to be a “bridge” between local industry and the arts.
Ripley said that he would like to see Port Angeles become a “place of call” for cruise ships.
The city also will need more services that supports tourism and needs of retirees, he said.
“We need to attract businesses that cater to those needs,” Ripley said.
Petersen said keeping businesses here is as important as attracting new commercial and industrial operations.
“We need to respect what we have . . . then foster those folks coming forward and support them,” she said.
Petersen also said the city needs to keep in mind how quickly the world economy, as well as technology and energy, is changing.
“It’s on the fast track . . . and I think we have to go with it,” she said.
Rayonier site
When it comes to the future use of the Rayonier Inc.’s former pulp mill site on the Port Angeles waterfront, each candidate suggested a mixed use of residential and commercial development.
Ripley and Petersen said it also could be a place for tribal cultural center, since the area — where a pulp mill operated for 68 years before closing in 1997 — once was home to a Klallam village.
Burton said he would also like to see some industry at the site, and Mania suggested that it could also be the home of a seaweed farm.
“I’m not personally committed to any [use] other than seeing Rayonier held responsible for cleaning it up,” Mania added.
________
Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or at tom.callis@peninsuladailynews.com.
