OCEAN CITY — Four candidates for county commissioner agreed more than they disagreed at a wide-ranging forum Thursday night at the Fire District 7 Hall in Ocean City.
Topics ranged from crude-by-rail, the public hospital district and weekend transit service to a sewer connection to the North Beach, tourism, jobs and fishing as Al Smith, Jim Heikel, Keith Olson and Vickie Raines fielded questions asked by moderators from the North Beach Community Improvement Association and North Coast News Editor Angelo Bruscas.
District 3 is represented by outgoing Commissioner Herb Welch, and encompasses the northwest corner of the county, including Ocean Shores and the North Beach, as well as Hoquiam, Central Park and Cosmopolis. Smith, a Democrat, independent Heikel, Republican Olson and non-partisan candidate and Cosmopolis Mayor Raines will face off in the August primary. The top two vote-getters will advance to the November General Election.
In addition to the questions asked by the moderators, the audience of close to 60 people were encouraged to chime in on the discussion. Most of those who attended live on the North Beach and inside District 3, though some came from Montesano and Elma in District 2 and Aberdeen in District 2.
Anti-crude-by-rail buttons were worn by many, and the issue came up more than once.
Robert Ford, a retired architect, challenged each candidate to take an anti-crude by rail button. Smith, who owns North West Alternative Energy LLC, is strongly against the proposals. Heikel, a commercial pilot and owner of Grays Harbor Flight, is worried that risks to the fishing industry and environment outweigh the benefits. Both took them.
Olson politely refused because he supports an oil pipeline rather than bringing crude in by rail. He suggested storage facilities be put in Montesano or Elma, “farther away from the water.” He is in favor of “bringing quality family wage jobs to the Harbor,” he said.
Raines gave a couple of lengthy and nuanced answers saying safety and the environment are a big concern. She also praised “excellent” Port of Grays Harbor officials for bringing jobs to the Harbor. As for crude-by-rail, she thinks the projects may not pass muster in terms of environmental laws.
When presented with the button, she removed her campaign button and joked, “I’d be happy to wear one of yours, if you wear one of mine.” She handed Ford hers, which she replaced on her sweater with the anti-crude button.
The audience erupted in laughter.
The biggest groan of the night came in a discussion of road levies. All agreed that the county should stop using road tax levies to compensate for shortages in the county budget.
Raines took a very strong position, saying it “would not get a ‘yes’ vote from me.”
“That’s a woman for you,” Smith rejoined to groans in the audience, “a very smart woman.”
The proposed public hospital district to run Grays Harbor Community Hospital is seen as a distinctly mixed blessing by all four.
Making Grays Harbor Community Hospital public and electing commissioners would make it “transparent and open,” Raines said. On the flip side, she worried, “we don’t know how much debt will be put on the backs of the taxpayers.”
She noted it would be tough to travel to Olympia for Level 3 trauma care.
“We need a hospital, period,” said Smith, a volunteer firefighter and emergency medical technician in the Wishkah Valley.
He added, however, he doesn’t understand some of what is on the August ballot about the district and worries others don’t, as well.
Heikel, who spent 28 years as a paramedic and firefighter for the City of Hoquiam, said he’s still gathering information and doesn’t yet have a stance on the hospital issue.
Olson was more direct. “I am extremely frustrated that they throw this on us without understanding what is going on,” he said.
A possible emergency medical clinic on the North Beach also came up.
Smith supports an aggressive push for a 24/7 clinic in North Beach, while Heikel said he advocates earthquake and tsunami preparedness but did not commit. Quinault resident and timber faller Olson said there should be one and in the rain forest, too. Raines said she’d like to see a clinic, but said it comes down to tax dollars.
Candidates disappointed many in the audience by pleading ignorance of plans for wastewater treatment for Illahee and Oyehut, where residents on septic systems may be ordered by the state to hook up to a proposed sewer system in the area. The county will receive about $2.5 million in loans and grants to pay for the system, which is reported to cost $3 million.
Ocean City resident and marine biologist Joe Schumacker warned there have been high levels of fecal coliform recorded at the beaches. The sewer system could aleviate the contamination, possibly being caused by septic tanks and run-off in the area.
The candidates agreed that weekend bus service to the beach should be restored if funding can be found, that a resident deputy from the Grays Harbor County Sheriff’s Office should remain, that beach and rain forest tourist attractions should be more heavily promoted by the county and that the county’s building permitting process should be clear, consistent and streamlined.
All four agreed that if funds can be found, the transfer station for garbage and recycling in North Beach should be reopened.
All of the candidates expressed an interest in pursuing sustainable jobs.
Raines noted when mill closures hit the Harbor, she helped attract Cosmo Speciality Fibers and Peterbilt to her city. Olson believes more jobs will surge with much less regulation. Heikel and Smith think everyone individually should do more to attract jobs to the area.
Ballots go out July 18.
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