Voting

Coming up quickly on election day.  Get those ballots in the mail.  You've had lots of money spent on mailers to tell you why X is the best candidate or Y is the best idea since sliced cheese, so you probably don't need any more from me on that topic.  However, you don't get very much on local elections.  Of course, there are only two, I think, contested elections here in Point Roberts: at the Water District, it's Arthur Reber and Wayne Knowles; and at the Fire District it's Judson Meraw and Stan Riffle.

Reber is the past/first Chair of the Community Advisory Committee and in that role he learned quickly about how to go about dealing with the County machinery.  And, he was always committed to involving the community in the processes of his committee.  There were lots of different forces at work in the Advisory Committee and I think Reber did a terrific job in managing them.  I didn't favor the Committee taking on the task of the Character Plan Committee, but it's not as if I had some terrific alternative plan to suggest when Jack Louws decided that Committee needed to be brought back to life and Reber supported taking on that job, too.

Knowles is the guy originally behind Seabright Farms, and he's been here in the community a long time.  Mostly, though, he's a business guy, as far as I can tell.  And I am inclined to think that his interest in the Water Board is largely a function of his interest in his many potential Seabright cottages.  Well, we're all interested in having water, of course, but ...

So, I'm hoping Reber wins in this position, not least because he has the time and interest and demonstrated capability of community work.  Commissioner jobs are essentially unpaid, so it's little surprise that many people with other obligations aren't too willing to spend much time at them.  Reber will spend the time.

At the Fire District, I'm hoping that Judson Meraw wins that slot.  I know Judson from having worked with him some years ago on the creation of the Community Events sign, and also from his generous work in helping to create the Book Sculpture in front of the Julius Firehall (the location of our new library-soon-to-be).  I know Stan from having watched him at work at the dozens of Fire District meetings that I have attended.  If you have read this blog over time, you'll know I'm no fan of the way that Bill Meursing runs Commission meetings, and in my experience, Riffle is just another vote for Bill Meursing on all decisions.  I never saw Riffle stand up for community involvement in the Commissioners' work (unless it was to support Chief Carleton's community involvement programs, which is a very different kind of community involvement).  Judson is all about community involvement in every form.

On a 3-person Commission, taking an extra vote away from Meursing, would only serve democracy I think, where we usually think it's 'One Person, One Vote.'