Oak Harbor City Council and Mayor

Oak Harbor

I have relied heavily on the 9-20-19 story in the Whidbey News Times about the Chamber of Commerce candidates’ event. Thanks both to the Chamber and the News-Times.

http://www.whidbeynewstimes.com/news/city-council-candidates-focus-on-development-at-forum/

Oak Harbor City Council, position 1

Tara Hizon. incumbent taraonwhidbey@gmail.com thizon@oakharbor.org

https://tarahizon.wordpress.com/about-tara/

no response

Because she failed to respond to my posted questions, I had to do some actual research. I found answers to my questions in her on-line postings. 

A resident of Oak Harbor since 1985, Tara Hizon is a graduate of Oak Harbor High School and has been an active community volunteer since her early teens. 

Tara is currently serving her second term on Council, where she encourages a high level of communication and community involvement. Her leadership philosophy is to embrace technology and cultivate responsible, long term solutions through proactive planning. She is Certified in Advanced Municipal Leadership.

Tara is employed full-time at Island County Human Services, serving as the Community Coalition Coordinator for the Oak Harbor Youth Coalition, which focuses on substance abuse prevention. She holds a Certification in Prevention Science and serves on the Interpersonal Abuse training workgroup, WA Association for Substance Abuse & Violence Prevention, and the Youth Marijuana Prevention & Education Program strategic planning committee.

In addition to advocating for local youth, Tara volunteers for a number of organizations and events, including:
Association of WA Cities
Driftwood Days
Hydros for Heros
Island Co. Dept. of Emergency Management
National Night Out
Oak Harbor Public Schools
Oak Harbor Music Festival
Point in Time homeless count
Queer Pride on Whidbey
Seattle Pride Foundation
United Way of Island Co

Passionate about youth, the environment and the arts, she can frequently be found both on and off stage at the Whidbey Playhouse, participating in beach clean-up efforts or beachcombing with her two nieces.

The News-Times reported that at the Chamber event, Tara Hizon ‘touted’ her accomplishments:
~ Efforts to get council meetings streamed on line

~ Security cameras at Windjammer park

~ “criticism is not leadership. What we need is ideas.”

Q – what would you do with a $5mil budget windfall? A- residents should be able to vote on a list of options. She had to explain to Mack that $ is not free to spend but is allocated by project or program.

Found it necessary to explain the 1% limit on property tax increases, less than inflation. 

She supports the street repair tax. She says fixing streets is vital to economic development. “if we aren’t willing to invest in our community, why would we expect anyone else to?

Michael Crawford mcrawf59@msn.com no response

https://www.facebook.com/MichaelCrawfordforOakHarborCityCouncil/

https://michaelcrawfordforcitycouncil.com/

Oak Harbor Church of the Nazarene “Small Groups”. https://ohnaz.com/small-groups/Men  Mike Crawford plans events geared to guys’ interests as well as working toward small cohort groups that help men grow spiritually.

I have read through some very long winded (I should talk) facebook entries, and have to conclude that there are some serious internal contradictions here. On the one hand, growth is good, more, more, etc. On the other hand, not that kind of growth. We don’t want those poor people living in affordable housing right in the middle of downtown where everyone can see them. Not quite in those words, but that’s what it comes down to. 

There’s the usual appeal to fear: “public drug use, open vagrancy, panhandling.”  Yes, its true. As a result of the fascist coup which took over our federal government in 2016 there are many more people hurting. They’re going hungry, doing without basic medical care, and often without shelter. Mr Crawford’s approach appears to be that ‘those people’ should go hurt somewhere else and not make themselves so obvious in Oak Harbor. 

He then proposes that the city work with the Navy and developers to deal with the housing shortage. Fact is, the Navy could address any military housing issues any day, any time. The claim that the Navy is the single biggest economic driver has been demonstrated not to be the case. Its so easy to tote up the plus column, but somehow no one is paying attention to the minuses. That would include the lack of workforce housing. And it would include the social problems that go with such a lack. I seriously doubt that developers are actually going to provide affordable ‘workforce’ housing. What we will see if we turn those people loose is the sprawl of the 1980s which led to passage of the Growth Management Act. 

Mr Crawford at one point claimed that the city had no long term plan. That leads me to conclude that he does not know a whole lot about city governance and state law. The Growth Management Act, GMA, was passed in 1990 and slowly implemented throughout the 1990s. GMA requires that every city and county adopt a Comprehensive Plan, complete with a Public Participation element. That Comp Plan must then be reviewed and updated periodically. Right now I think we’re up to every 8 years. One of the 13 ‘elements’ of the Comp Plan is Affordable Housing. It might do Mr Crawford some good to read the city’s Comp Plan.

He opposes the street repair tax because, he says “there must be some other way.” Fine, but then let’s hear about that ‘other way.’ The fact is that the city has been in the business of maintaining its road infrastructure for a very long time. True, it may have fallen behind, but as Ms Hizon points out, thanks to Mr Tim Eyman, property taxes may not be increased by more than 1%/year. Now check out the rate of inflation, which last time I checked was in the 3% range. Notice a discrepancy? It becomes impossible for the city (or any other jurisdiction in Washington) ever to catch up. So things slip. And no, there is not a hidden pot at the end of the rainbow waiting to provide the missing funds. Its up to the people in the city to decide what’s important to them and then grit their teeth and pay for it – which is precisely what Ms Hizon is saying.  

On his facebook page Mr Crawford accuses Ms Hizon of failing to attend meetings, suggesting that she picks and chooses which meetings to attend depending on the agenda. It would be interesting to hear what she has to say on the subject. He accuses her of failing to support “our NAVY brothers and sisters” but being present to vote on the Low Income Housing project. He then goes to great (and somewhat vituperative) lengths to discuss how very wrong that decision was. What he and the business community evidently fail to comprehend is that more people in the downtown area is a good thing, not a bad thing. He displays the common inherent bias toward poor people. There’s something wrong with them. They don’t belong here. I applaud Ms Hizon for supporting this project. 

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News Flash: Half or more of Michael Crawford's campaign funds come from a company called Tri-Son Investments - which just happens to own Wright's Crossing, the company currently suing Island County in the state Court of Appeals for failing to amend its Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Ordinance to allow construction of 1500 houses on farmland in the Monroe Landing area. They've lost three times in court, so now they're buying their way onto the city council. And Michael Crawford doesn't seem to have a problem with taking their dirty money.

Basically, what I see is a strong young woman doing good work being challenged by the same old same old – older white authoritarian economically comfortable Navy loving male who has no problem with being in bed with a developer. If I could vote in Oak Harbor I would stick with Tara Hizon. 

Oak Harbor City Council, position 3

Jeffrey Mack info@jeffmackforcitycouncil.com responded

Here is his response:  

Thank you for reaching out to me. It has been a very hectic campaign along top of running my business here in Oak Harbor. I read over all of your questions, and all of these are answered on my website www.jeffmackforcitycouncil.com. Please read it in its entirety. I know it is a lot of information, but there are many issues facing our community. 

Kind Regards, 

Jeff Mack

First off, thanks a lot, guy. What I take away from that response is that you consider your time much more valuable than mine. I found it a bit rude. I did in fact peruse the website, and find that Mr Mack exemplifies just about everything I dislike about Oak Harbor. He bemoans what he claims is a lack of plans to guide the city into the future. As mentioned in my comments on Mr Crawford, there is in fact such a plan in place. Many of them, in fact. When running for office it is good to do one’s homework.

What really fried my cookies was his claim that a good plan is not that hard to devise, and that investors and ‘smart people’ should get together and create one. Mr Mack has evidently forgotten that the city is comprised of people – the public – and that those people have an absolute right to participate in the development of plans which will guide their future. Not all of those people are investors or ‘smart.’ The implication of that statement is that none of those people count. That is anti-democratic and I automatically disqualify anyone making such a statement.

He’s also against the street repair tax. I’ve written about that in comments on Mr Crawford.

And now I discover that he is a nearly wholly owned subsidiary of Wright's Crossing. See news flash below.

Joseph Busig jbusig4oakharbor@gmail.com responded

1.     Why are you running for this particular position?

I am running for this position because I want to make city council a people's council. For too long has Oak Harbor been represented by the same kind of people. I recognize that I am a cisgender white male, but my platform and privilege I hold shall be used to raise the voices of the undeserved. I will be a working class voice on the city council that amplifies the voices of disenfranchised citizens such as people of color, LGBTQIA+, women, union workers, disabled folks, youth, seniors, and immigrants and refugees. Oak Harbor has not been transparent, lacking outreach and accessibility to its residents. We must have more public forums, advertise more, and ensure that community boards are reflective of the community that they serve. 

2.     What do you hope to accomplish in this position? 

When elected, I hope to accomplish making Oak Harbor a more accessible and equitable place for all. Construction of safe workforce housing, the installation of renewable energy generators creating good living wage union jobs, the creation of a citizens coalition that brings minority groups and union workers together to pass civil rights and labor rights ordinances, and making government accessible to the people through public forums and canvassing will be my main goals to focus on.  

3.     What problems do you see that you expect to correct or alleviate?

The problems I see in Oak Harbor are those of housing unavailability, homelessness, and a lack of government transparency or outreach. That is why we must work with city officials and state groups and legislators to plan safe, equitable, integrated, and suitable workforce housing for the citizens of Oak Harbor. With the homelessness, we have to work more closely with our state representatives to find ways to fund programs such as treatment facilities and or resource centers where homeless citizens can be linked to resources, addiction recovery, careers, schooling or apprenticeship opportunities, voting, and housing. In regards to a lack of government transparency, we seldom have public forums in regards to ordinances passed or community projects. We should be having monthly public forums aside from regular council meetings. We should also fix how public comments can be submitted. Currently, public input can only be acknowledged if the resident is present and speaks before the council. This is unfair to working class citizens who do not have the time to make meetings or residents with lack of accessibility to transportation or are disabled themselves. I propose making public comments not just be in person, but via a phone call, recorded message, video call, letter, or email to attain the voices of all community members where possible. 

4.     What relevant experience do you have?

The relevant experience I hold is I was a student representative on the Oak Harbor Public Schools School Board for a year. While I held no voting power, I was able to review fiscal year budgets, oversee levies, and speak on behalf of all students within the school district. I also campaigned for the fully funding of education during the McCleary decision and spoke with community officials as well as small business owners. I have been a member of the Citizens Against Domestic & Sexual Abuse (CADA) Board of Trustees for four years, and recently elected the Treasurer. In my basic member position, I was responsible for creating events and community outreach for CADA. As Treasurer, I oversee monthly budget reports and report my findings with the board, after meeting with the financial manager. Finally, I have been a part of the Oak Harbor Youth Coalition for four years where I have been a representative of both the high school and college students in regards to issues impacting the youth of Oak Harbor. I have the capabilities to oversee city budgets, fiscal year reports in a government as well as non-profit setting, and be a suitable representative to all the citizens of my constituency. 

5.     What will be your operating philosophy in office?

My operating philosophy in office is to never forget who I serve. I grew up in a low income working class environment, coming from an abusive childhood. I have a unique perspective that not many elected officials can say that they have experienced. As a young adult, bisexual man, and devoted public servant I strive to make the place I live a better one. I recognize the privilege I hold, and will use my platform to amplify the voices of the underserved and underrepresented. Low income residents, the working class, people of color, LGBTQIA+ residents, youth, disabled folks, small business owners, and unions need an active voice that will always campaign with them and elevate their voices. Because a community, government, or any position of power should reflect those of the people they serve. People should never seek an office for entitlement, rather to participate in servant leadership. The power belongs to all the people, and I will never stray from this cherished belief. 

6.     What message would you like to convey to voters?

I will be a sounding board for the people, amplifying the voices of those seldom sought out. I'm running to inspire a movement with a message that your local government belongs to you. It should look like you, fight for you, care for you, and assist you in finding resources or connecting you to higher levels of government. I want to inspire engagement from groups left out and unheard. To remind the working people we have a voice, and when we organize we cannot be silenced. We don't need status quo or more of the same, we need bold solutions and actions. Encouraging women, people of color, working class people, disabled residents, LGBTQIA+ residents, and youth to seek office is the true goal of this movement. Together we can fight for affordable workforce housing, a clean environment, renewable energy, community involvement, civil rights, union and tenant rights, education, public transportation, and infrastructure. Because city council must be the people's council, and it is with the people that power lies.  

On 9-20-19 the Whidbey News Times reported that Joseph Busig stated he will represent the working class; he supports affordable workforce housing, but it needs to be near public services & ADA compliant. 

He favors the street repair tax. 

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News Flash: Jeffrey Mack appears to be joined at the hip, and at the campaign contributions, with fellow candidate Michael Crawford. Both of their campaigns have accepted large sums from a single Nevada corporation, Tri-son, amounting to half or more of their total campaign contributions. Tri-son, as mentioned above, is the owner of Wright's Crossing, the company suing Island County, insisting on its right to develop where, when, and how it likes in spite of codes, planning, or regulations. One presumes that, in this era of quid pro quo, that Wright's Crossing considers those contributions as an investment. It is rather openly buying seats on the Oak Harbor city council. Color me 1) not surprised and 2) disgusted. 

I’m loving seeing the new young blood rising. I’ve heard Joseph Busig speak and very much like what I see. He is young and still idealistic. He truly cares about what happens to people. If I were voting in Oak Harbor I would be voting for Joseph Busig.

Oak Harbor Mayor

Pat Harman patharmanformayor@yahoo.com responded

He was using a cell phone and could not type answers into it, so chose to phone me instead.

He invited me to visit his website: www.patharmanformayor.net and said it linked to a sympathetic story in the News Times by Jessie Stensland. I reviewed both and found them consistent with our conversation.

To the questions:

1. Why are you running for this particular position? 

Somebody’s got to do the job who understands how government works. He was a legislative aide in Alaska so knows the ins and outs. He used the sewage treatment plant as his prime example of fiscal mismanagement. The plant is exorbitantly expensive, unnecessarily so. He felt the city should have asked the voters before embarking on this venture. Since I attended the many public meetings on this very subject, I asked when he arrived in Oak Harbor. He said he lived in Alaska until 2000, when he moved to Bothell. It was in 2006 that he came to Oak Harbor. He acknowledged that he had not been there during the design phase. He also said he would likely not have attended those meetings because he doesn’t like to attend meetings. I suggested that this might be a handicap as mayor, but he said he knew ways around that. He said the city had borrowed $90 million at 2% interest to pay for the treatment plant. That translates to $333k/month out of the general fund for the next 30 years. The lack of that funding, he said, has an adverse impact on business. It is financial irresponsibility to saddle the city and the taxpayers with that cost. He also cited the issue of deferred maintenance and how that is costing businesses. Because the boat lift at the marina was not maintained and dredging was not done, the Regatta, which pumped significant amounts of revenue into city merchants, has moved elsewhere. They closed the RV park and pump station to build the sewage treatment plant but then never reopened it. This is costing local merchants. He feels the present mayor is just plain bad for business.

2. What do you hope to accomplish in this position?  He wants to build a municipal airport, which would be good for business. He wants to draw in investment capital, and those people fly in their private jets. A local airport would serve that purpose. Around the airport he would develop a business park and a medical office building. Medical specialists could then fly in to practice their specialty on a rotating schedule. I asked about potential locations and he cited Wes Lupien field on Monroe Landing road “or any old cow pasture.” He said he would even ask the Navy about sharing OLF, but acknowledged that probably would not work. 

3. What problems do you see that you expect to correct or alleviate? He pretty much covered it above.

4. What relevant experience do you have? He worked for NOAA for 20 years, part of that time as director of their information center, an executive position. He said he knew how to work in a large organization.

5. What will be your operating philosophy in office? Total transparency. He will institute at least monthly outreach via newsletters, emails, etc. He proposes to add fiscal notes to all government actions. That note would remain with the proposed action, and be amended as the proposal is revised and updated. When the action/decision is finally made, the note would be attached to the final archived document.

6. What message would you like to convey to voters?  Financial responsibility. He said that once he got the city on the right track, he would resign in favor of the mayor pro-tem. In any event, he would not run for a second term. His entire intent is to get the city onto a fiscally responsible track and then to exit. 

Bob Severns incumbent rseverns1@gmail.com   no response

I have now heard complaints from several parties to the effect that Mayor Severns has lost interest in the job and is simply no longer doing it. One party claimed that Mrs Severns is running the mayor’s office. Others said that he “has been rather passive”, both in his duties as mayor and in his re-election campaign. Its hard to get excited about someone who evidently is not interested in doing the job.

The 9-20-19 Whidbey News Times report on the Oak Harbor Chamber of Commerce meeting said

“Severns emphasized the differences. He’s been in Oak Harbor a long time, has been a successful businessman, a council member, chair of the  NAS Whidbey Task Force. He believes that Oak Harbor’s relationship with the Navy is key.

In fact, he believes it is so key that he has asked the Attorney General to call off the lawsuit concerning Growler noise. He called the case “an irresponsible waste of resources and unjustifiable to the majority of (his) constituents.”   “Your action could also adversely affect future Navy decisions, which could cripple the economy in our Pacific Northwest and leave us without the protection and support that we value as a community and a state,” he wrote in his letter to Ferguson. Severns is convinced that its all a plot by AG Ferguson to close down NAS Whidbey.

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I am by no means convinced that Pat Harman is the best man for the job. But I am quite convinced that Bob Severns is not the man for the job. Mr Harman has said that at most he will serve out a single term. Seems to me that the good people of Oak Harbor should be able to find a truly competent, informed, well intentioned person to run for mayor in 4 years. Meanwhile, if I were voting in Oak Harbor, I would vote for Pat Harman.