Commissioner candidates spar as voters consider ballots

District 2 Whitman County Commissioner Pat O’Neill believes his election battle with challenger Dean Kinzer comes down to one decision.

“It’s down to one issue: Hawkins,” said O’Neill, a Democrat from Johnson. “Good or bad, this is what this election’s about.”

“I put my job on the line for it.”

Kinzer, a Republican farmer from Ewartsville, said he filed for the job because of O’Neill’s January decision to increase from $9.1 million to $15 million the county’s commitment to build infrastructure for a 714,000-square-foot shopping center long-proposed by Boise-based Hawkins Companies.

“That’s what pushed me into the race,” said Kinzer, 58. “But all the Hawkins decision shows is how ridiculous Pat’s decision-making is.”

O’Neill, a 64-year-old former airline mechanic, said the county’s tax base prompted him to vote in favor of the $5.9 million increase Jan. 3. The original $9.1 million agreement with Hawkins was signed in 2008.

“I inherited this thing when I came on board. Originally, I was against it, sure,” said O’Neill. “But after a year, year-and-a-half of being in here and seeing our revenues and seeing everything that was already in place, it made sense.”

Since most of the county is farmland, said O’Neill, the county has few options for boosting tax revenues. He noted open space tax reductions on farmland produces 54 cents of revenue to the county per acre.

“We are a farming community. But there’s no revenue there,” he said. “We have to find another way to find revenue to pay to keep up this county.”

In addition to the revenue, O’Neill said the mall will bring in more industrial businesses.

“Why? Because there’s nothing here to shop for,” said O’Neill.

Kinzer, who has farmed since 1974, said the county has a spending problem, rather than a revenue problem.

“His premise is we have to have more revenue. And that’s not the case,” said Kinzer. “There are certainly efficiencies we can find to drive down spending. You learn to live with what you have.”

Kinzer said his years of farming have come with a calculator in his non-tractor driving hand so he can run cash flows on his operation.

“I’m betting he’s never done that before in his life,” Kinzer said of O’Neill. “He made an impulsive decision without any research into the numbers or any forethought about the consequences of partnering with a private company to compete with local businesses.”

As for efficiency, O’Neill said his role in bringing the long-shelved New World accounting system on line was key to keeping better track of the county’s finances.

“I was the one who said ‘I can’t live with this’ from the get-go,” he said. “And I got recalled because of it. But regardless of that, it was the right thing to do and now we are getting good information we can use effectively in planning our budget.”

But Kinzer challenged O’Neill’s role in putting the software to use.

“Everybody I’ve talked to in the courthouse said Pat had nothing to do with New World,” said Kinzer. “There was a lot of other people who worked hard to get that up.”

In the District 1 race to replace ousted three-term incumbent Greg Partch, candidates Art Swannack of Lamont and Bill Tensfeld of Rosalia see building a sense of teamwork as the top need for the county’s government.

“We’ve had a lot of years where people have felt they weren’t listened to or weren’t being worked with,” said Swannack, 47, a farmer and rancher from the Lamont area.

“I think I can do a better job than what’s been done over the past few years,” said Tensfeld, a 51-year-old fire chief from Rosalia. “One of my biggest goals is to get a team of three commissioners that will work together for the future of the county. That’s going to take a lot of give and take on a personal level, but it’s vital to move the county ahead.”

Both say their experience has prepared them for the commissioner seat.

Swannack said life riding the wheat market has taught him how to hold the line on his farm’s expenses.

“When the price of wheat was down, you learned how to decide what’s important and what’s optional,” he said. “That’s the same thing with running the county. We’re not talking about running a Fortune 500 company here.”

Tensfeld said his experience as Rosalia Fire Chief and his years of working with the state Department of Transportation gives him a leg up when dealing with public safety and transportation issues.

“Every fire’s different. And that’s just like sitting in the commissioner’s seat. Every day brings a new and different situation and set of challenges,” he said. “All that would fall into place in the commissioners’ meetings.”

Swannack said his experience on various boards and commissions gives him insight into setting the county’s budget and directing a vision for future operations.

“I’ve already experienced on the school board and the fire commission that sometimes what you would like to do has to take a back seat to what you need to do.”

Ballots were mailed out to 21,061 voters last Friday, Oct. 19. They must be turned in or postmarked by Nov. 6. The elections office has installed a curbside drop box in the alley behind their office. The box is located on the east side of the alley which runs between Island and Upton Streets. Two drop boxes have also been installed in Pullman to allow voters to return ballots 24-7.