PORT ANGELES — Candidates for Position 1 on the Port Angeles City Council answered questions and provided insight into their thoughts during the Port Angeles Business Association breakfast meeting Tuesday morning.
Incumbent LaTrisha Suggs is running against Gilbert Hall and James Taylor in the Aug. 5 primary.
When asked about pop ups or food trucks, Hall said food trucks are a good thing and that he honestly considered opening one, while Taylor said if the business can meet the health and wage requirements, the city should stay out of its way.
“I think having food trucks are a source of what we just talked about, economic development,” Suggs said.
The candidates were asked for their thoughts on Washington state being a sanctuary state, to which Taylor declined to give an answer. Suggs said Port Angeles law enforcement enforces the laws of Washington state and said it’s important to be a voice for those who don’t have one, such as the migrant community. Hall said his opinion shouldn’t matter because the city council is supposed to be nonpartisan and offering an opinion would be partisan.
“I want to bring nonpartisanship to everything,” Hall said.
When asked about affordable housing, Suggs said the city needs more affordable rental units while Hall said the more housing units there are available, the lower prices will be. Taylor said the problem is driven by the fact that Port Angeles doesn’t have a vibrant economy.
“We’re overly focused on the bottom of the numbers,” he said adding that governmental institutions are driving up costs.
The candidates were asked what people can say about them to get them elected and Hall said he’s a doer who gets things done. Taylor stated he’s a problem solver and Suggs mentioned her ties to the community. She said she’s looking at what’s best for the 20,000 people who live in Port Angeles.
When asked about logging, Taylor said timber industry needs to not have lands locked up while Suggs said the city council isn’t against logging, it’s against logging in the Elwha River watershed, since that is the only source of water for Port Angeles. Hall said the city needs timber sales to improve the schools.
The candidates were also asked about what they need to do for water planning. Hall said the city should look into a reservoir and Taylor said the city needs to do whatever it takes to have the water it needs. Suggs stated a reservoir on the Elwha River is a no go, adding that two dams were just taken out.
“Preserving the Elwha River is an easy and affordable thing to do,” she said.
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Reporter Emily Hanson can be reached at emily.hanson@peninsula dailynews.com.
