Commissioner, councilor candidates appear in person on online to answer questions from political science students
By Damian Mann for Ashland.news
Candidates for Ashland City Council and Jackson County commissioner held a fast-paced exchange Wednesday during a forum at Southern Oregon University.
Political science students from a class on political campaigns, partnering with SOU’s Office of Government Affairs, hosted the forum for contested City Council seats and the Jackson County Board of Commissioners.
Chloe Fiveash, who is majoring in biochemistry, was the forum moderator.
Instructor Rob Patridge, who is also SOU general counsel and was a representative in the Oregon House from 1999-2005, told audience of more than 50 students and others, “This is (my) first time ever teaching a class.”
He said scheduling issues prevented three candidates from fully participating in the forum, though some appeared briefly by video.
The forum, just three weeks away from the Nov. 5 election, aims to give candidates in local races an opportunity to discuss their positions and explain how they intend to support a good quality of life in the city of Ashland and in Jackson County. Questions for candidates included topics such as the proposed new water treatment facility, homelessness and wildfires.
Denise Krause, a Democrat from rural Ashland, and Randy Sparacino, a Republican from Medford, are running against each other for Jackson County Commissioner.
In Ashland council Position 1, Teresa Cisneros, an Indian Education Facilitator for the Southern Oregon Education Services District, is running against Douglas Knauer, who is on the Ashland Planning Commission and is retired from a career in corporate management.
Council Position 2 candidates are incumbent Jeff Dahle, who runs a technical consulting business, and Kelly Marcotulli, who is a preschool educator.
For council Position 3, incumbent Dylan Bloom, an automotive operations manager, faces challenger Eric Navickas, who was on the council from 2006 to 2010 and is an organic farmer.
Three candidates — Marcotulli, Bloom and Sparacino — had scheduling issues that prevented them from attending the forum in person, but provided some comments through video.
Technical issues also severely limited Marcotulli, Bloom and Sparacino from answering questions during the 1-1/2-hour forum, which allowed one- or two-minute responses from the candidates, who received their questions ahead of time.
Wildfire threat
The first question posed for the two commissioner candidates was how they would address wildfires, which pose an ongoing threat to Ashland as well as summer smoke that has had a lasting impact on tourism in the city.
Krause said during the Almeda Fire in 2020, thousands were struggling to find a home, and there were glaring gaps in communication to alert residents, and the communication wasn’t also provided in Spanish.
“I would like to get better coordination,” she said.
Expanding broadband communication into rural Jackson County would help provide additional communication, particularly in areas without cellular coverage, Krause said.
She said she would push for more help for communities by seeking grants.
During her rebuttal time, Krause said she supported managing forests more effectively.
Sparacino said he would push for a reduction in fuel loads in forests, particularly around communities close to forested areas.
He applauded Ashland’s efforts to reduce its fuel loads with helicopter logging to remove dead or dying Douglas firs.
“We need to do this in other communities,” he said. On the east side of Medford, there are some areas that are also at risk from fire, Sparacino said.
Measure 15-234, building a new water treatment plant
Council candidates Knauer and Cisneros were asked their position on Measure 15-234, which would allow the city to bond up to $75 million for a new water treatment plant that could be paid off through higher water rates.
Cisneros, clarifying an earlier statement she made at a Sunday forum at Ashland High School, said she wanted more answers to underlying issues about the need for a new treatment plant.
She said she wanted to include tribal people in the discussion and wanted to make sure that Lomakatsi Restoration Project was part of the effort.
Cisneros said she would like more clarification about how the treatment plant would affect taxes.
“What is the impact of that really?” she said.
Knauer said the hit to ratepayers would be dependent on what kind of federal Water and Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act loan the city might receive.
“If we go with WIFIA, the rates will be affected,” he said.
Since Ashland has a tiered rate system based on how much water is used, he said he would favor leaving the lowest tier rates untouched.
Adequate law enforcement resources
Dahle and Marcotulli were asked if the city had adequate law enforcement resources.
Dahle said the police had about 33,000 calls for service in 2023 with a force of 22 officers.
“That’s amazing,” Dahle said.
Over the past five years, serious crime has dropped from about 800 (in a year) down to about 300 (in 2023),” he said. Marcotulli said she thought the city had an adequate number of police officers, and she said the SOU campus security (SOU Campus Public Safety) does a “fantastic job.”
Closure of homeless shelter
Navickas and Bloom were asked what to do about the homeless shelter building at 2200 Ashland St. which opened for several months but closed down this year over funding issues.
A technical problem prevented Bloom from responding remotely, though he previously voiced support for wildfire mitigation efforts.
Navickas said the city has the ability to reopen the shelter.
But, he said, the city has diverted money that could have gone to addressing homelessness and instead is spending it on two additional police officers.
Navickas said Ashland has an excess of housing that is empty because it has become attractive to those buying up investment property.
“I would want to tax the absentee homeowner,” he said. “I want to find compassionate means to address homelessness.”
Rebuttal, other issues
During a rebuttal period, candidates were able to expound on some of the issues facing the community.
Dahle said said he approached his role on the council through a lens of collaboration and kindness.
He said investing in a new water plant would be an investment for future generations.
“Do we love our kids?” he asked. “We need to pay it forward.”
Navickas said the existing plant is subject to flooding and fire. During flooding in 1997, pools near the plant filled with decomposed granite, he said.
Cisneros said she views everything through an equity lens, including the response to the Almeda Fire, which impacted low-income and the Spanish-speaking community.
“Thousands of families were suddenly unhoused,” she said.
And these families were going through a traumatic time, while trying to negotiate bureaucracies, she said.
“They’re in trauma and they don’t know how to respond,” Cisneros said.
Knauer said the community has to find ways to adapt and deal with the dangers of wildfire and smoke.
“Wildfire and smoke is the fifth season,” he said. “People don’t come to places where the AQI (air quality index) hits 600.”
Camping place for homeless
Candidates weighed in on the question of providing camping spaces for the homeless.
Navickas said camping isn’t a good long-term solution because of fire danger and the potential for drugs filtering down to children.
He said a better way should be developed to lessen the risk of having homeless people live in abject poverty.
“I don’t think camping is the solution.”
Dahle said homelessness is a complicated problem, and he also didn’t think camping isn’t a good solution since it only provides little spaces for the unhoused.
“We have to define what ‘good’ looks like,” he said.
Knauer said the community has to do a better job of separating the mentally ill or drug addicted and provide treatment from those who are about to lose their house.
“Can we help out that situation short term,” he said.
Knauer said Ashland doesn’t have an unlimited amount of money to deal with homelessness, and if it does put in more money, it needs to do it right.
“If we do it wrong, we will be held accountable,” he said.
Cisneros said too much time is spent talking about policies surrounding homelessness.
“Why aren’t we offering other resources in the meantime,” she said.
Cisneros said law enforcement needs more training in de-escalation when it comes homelessness.
Krause said she didn’t think camping is a permanent solution.
She criticized Jackson County for largely staying out of homelessness, even though health and human services is one of the largest county departments. The county acts like homelessness is a Medford or Ashland problem, Krause said.
“Jackson County was offered $1 million (from the state) for homelessness and the commissioners denied it,” she said. “I won’t do that.”
Navickas said the city used to have a youth liaison officer years ago.
He said that a similar model could create a liaison officer who could do outreach to the unhoused.
Reach freelance writer Damian Mann at [email protected].
Related stories:
Ashland City Council Position 1: Q&A with candidate Doug Knauer (Oct. 16, 2024)
Council forum: Six candidates, three seats, lots of questions (Oct. 14, 2024)
Q&A with Ashland City Council candidates Dylan Bloom and Eric Navickas (Oct. 14, 2024)
Q&A with Ashland City Council candidates Jeff Dahle and Kelly Marcotulli (Oct. 10, 2024)
