NEWS
2 • OCTOBER 2013
Alone on the ballot
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Kopelson unchallenged in bid to remain on Liberty Lake Council By Craig Howard
SPLASH CONTRIBUTOR
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Keith Kopelson chose not to mire in the post-ballot stew after falling 77 votes short of the Liberty Lake City Council in November 2011. Instead, Kopelson took what he had learned on the campaign trail and turned it a resilient soup. When Ryan Romney announced in December of 2011 that he would be leaving the governing board to pursue his master’s degree and other interests, Kopelson was the first to apply. He would eventually be joined by four hopefuls in an appointment process that included a tough line of questioning on Jan. 31, 2012, from City Council members and Mayor Steve Peterson. A resident of Liberty Lake since 2003, Kopelson was well-versed in municipal matters and adeptly addressed each inquiry. When council emerged with their decision, he was the unanimous pick. Since then, Kopelson has been a refreshing presence around the dais, known for his reflective evaluation of topics and an opinion that sometimes goes against the grain. When the discussion on re-evaluating the utility tax stalled at a council meeting in August, it was Kopelson who spoke up and urged that a separate workshop be held on the topic. A native of Massapequa, N.Y., Kopelson spent part of his adolescence in St. Louis before leaving for college. Kopelson’s professional background includes 20 years in retail management. He now owns a security/janitorial company as well as a limousine business. Kopelson and his wife, Nicole, have been married for 18 years and have four children. In addition to his work on council, Kopelson is active in other civic arenas. He is the co-founder of the Liberty Lake Merchants Association and a past president and current member of the Liberty Lake Rotary. In his spare time, Kopelson enjoys travel and scuba diving. Unlike his fellow council members, Lori Olander and Odin Langford, Kopelson will not face a challenger in this November’s general election. Despite the lack of opposition, Kopelson remains far
The Splash
A Cup of Joe from complacent going into the vote. The Splash caught up with the lone candidate for position 6 recently to discuss his recollections of campaigns past and present, the latest priorities hovering over City Hall and the benefits of listening to the advice of a wise grandmother.
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Let’s go back to fall of 2011. What are some of your memories of that election and why you decided to run for City Council?
Well, I love Liberty Lake, and I always felt like I wanted to do something to improve or maintain the city. It’s one thing talking about it or going to City Council meetings and standing up for a few seconds with something that’s usually a negative blurb. I just felt like if I was able to be part of council, I would be able to serve the city the way I wanted to on a volunteer basis. I probably made the decision to run three months before the election. I was a little intimidated by the election process. My grandmother believes that it starts at the city level, and we can change the country that way, so she was very enthusiastic about me running. Q. What was the strategy when it came to running against Shane Brickner? Were you out putting up campaign signs, doorbelling, handing out flyers? A. I did not do signs. The sign controversy was heated back then, and personally speaking, I felt that it was overused and it really took down the look of the city. I didn’t want people to vote for me because they saw my name — I wanted them to vote for me because they knew what I stood for. I spoke to a lot of people. The debates really helped quite a bit. The coverage from the Splash really helped. Q: Are there any aspects of your career in retail management that have carried over into your role in city government? A: I think so. I think when you have a fiscal responsibility to a company and their shareholders, you think of things a little differently. Now that I’m responsible for the city’s funds and the activities, I can translate my experience and make good decisions for the city. Customers in retail are very much like citizens in a city. They’re customers as well. Q: How would you characterize citizen
See KOPELSON, page 4