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Wednesday, October 23, 2013 | 75 cents
Views...................................Page 6 Pets......................................Page 8 Sports.................................Page 11 Obituaries.........................Page 17 Classified...........................Page 18
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Enumclaw City Council candidate debate Editor’s Note: City Council candidates for positions one, three, five and seven responded to three inpaper debate questions presented by the editorial department and columnist Rich Elfers. The candidates are : Position No. 1 Morgan Irwin. Pamela Harding has withdrawn although her statement is in the voter’s pamphlet. Position No. 3: Mike Sando and Shelby DeVol. DeVol did not send answers. Position No. 5: Tom Mann and Juanita Carstens. Position No. 7: Hoke Overland and Sean Krebs. Question 1: Are you willing to raise taxes to fix our streets? (This can be done using councilmatic bonds and not going to the
public for a vote.) Overland: I’m a fiscal conservative and I am not in favor of raising taxes without first letting our citizens have a voice. Hoke Overland While going doorto-door with my campaign, I have heard many residents say they want our streets fixed. As your councilman, I would propose that we put this matter before the voters. Within the city we do have a Transportation Benefit District but this board has very limited choices. Instead, we should ask the voters to consider raising city sales tax by 0.2 percent (just 2/10 of 1 percent), or ask for
a license tab fee increase. If we pair the additional revenue from either of these choices with grant money, we could make the necessary repairs and maintain our streets. Councilmatic bonds would require the city to have a surplus in the general fund to pay off the debt—unfortunately, the city’s budget is very tight and we do not have a surplus. Krebs: I’m not willing to raise taxes to fix our streets without a vote from the people. As I’ve stated publicly, the citizens of Enumclaw deserve a say in having their taxes raised. There are a number of ways to raise funds to fix our streets, including taxes, bonds and user fees and the most significant would involve a property or sales tax
increase. Before making such an increase, I would have to see at least an advisory vote from the people that they were in support of the tax Sean Krebs increase. Earlier this year, the council formed a Transportation Benefit District (TBD), which I have a leadership role in. The purpose of the TBD is to prioritize street projects and identify appropriate funding mechanisms. My position with the TBD is consistent with the position I’ve had in the nearly 12 years I’ve been on council – citizens should have
See COUNCIL, Page 3
Fire commission 28 debate: Part V
Sports Roundup Page 11
Weather The forecast for today, Wednesday, predicts cloudy skies with highs to 54 and lows to 43. Thursday‘s forecast is partly sunny with highs to 56 and lows to 43. Friday through Sunday calls for sunny skies with highs to 60 and lows in the mid 40s.
Editor’s Note: Angela Stubblefield and Elbert Reed are running for Fire District 28 Commissioner Position No. 2. The two candidates agreed to an in-paper debate. This is the final installment and includes a rebuttal and closing statements. Editorial question: The candidates rebutted last week’s answers to the following question: If you believe firefighters are paid too much, how much should they be paid and how do you propose to roll back salaries as a commissioner when the fire board is dealing with a legally binding contract? If the firefighters’ salaries are appropriate, will these salaries be sustainable?
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Elbert Reed
Angela Stubblefield
A young visitor to Maris Farms enjoyed riding around in style Sunday afternoon, pushed through the patch with a load of pumpkins. Maris Farms, on Sumner-Buckley Highway, is one of several seasonal attractions drawing good crowds this month. Others include Thomasson Family Farm in Enumclaw and Farm Fresh Produce between Buckley and Bonney Lake, along with Buckley’s Fright Factory. Photo by Kevin Hanson Count the number of turkeys for a chance to win 1 of 5 Smoked Turkeys from OLSON’S MEATS!
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Reed: Ms. Stubblefield demonstrates her lack of knowledge of standard human resource management practices regarding wages and benefits. I realize that for any taxpayers, it is difficult to pay
See FIRE DEBATE, Page 2
How does it work? Grab a copy of the Courier-Herald’s print edition (or read our Green Edition) for Nov 6, Nov. 13 and Nov. 20. Count the turkeys you find in each edition. Register online at our website, facebook or any mobile tablet to play and enter the correct number of turkeys for each week’s paper. Just click on the Turkey Contest and play - That Simple! (Must be 13 or older to play. See official rules online. Winning entries will be drawn on Nov. 25, 9am for 1of 5 turkeys.)
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