The political divide in the city of Sultan is deep. Leadership is needed both in the mayor’s office and on the city council to heal some deep wounds and move the city onto a more civil path to the future.
In the three-way primary race for mayor, voters will give themselves the best choice by putting incumbent C.H. Rowe and Ben Tolson on the November ballot.
Rowe has been a lightning rod for criticism, much of which is deserved. Complaints that his communication skills need improvement and that his administration isn’t open enough are valid, and the town has split into bitterly opposed camps during his first term. He is, however, an earnest and generous man who gives readily to causes in town and appears to have the town’s best interests at heart. Efforts to paint him as incompetent are off base.
With a new city administrator on board and a new software system being installed, there is hope that questions about the city budget soon will be straightened out. And Rowe insists that he has worked to improve lines of communication between his office, the city council and citizens. He needs to work hard to prove that in order to deserve a second term.
Rowe also has an appropriate vision for Sultan’s future. He believes the city must become more than a bedroom community, and wants to draw some industrial development in order to broaden the tax base and give more residents the opportunity to work in town and avoid commuting.
Tolson, a seven-year Sultan resident and pastor of the Assembly of God, was urged to run by citizens and threw his hat into the ring at the last minute. Since then, he has been doing his homework on city issues and has made impressive progress. He says that rebuilding relationships with city government and between the government and citizens would be a priority. He appears to have the people skills to lead such an effort.
Tolson does, however, have plenty of work to do to get up to speed on city business. He’s off to a good start.
Candidate Jeff Everett, a city council member and one of Rowe’s chief critics, says he would ensure that the city is run by the book, with no favoritism. He seems too steeped in the bitterness of Sultan’s political divide, however, and doesn’t appear dedicated to leading a healing process.
In the three-way race for Position 5 on the city council, two candidates stand out: Jim Flower and John Dick.
Flower, a local businesses owner who gained political experience years ago in Index, is well-versed in city issues and wants to help the council take a more civil approach. Dick, a proponent of the failed effort to change to a council/manager form of government, says he would work to improve communication with citizens and forge compromise. Richard Hill needs to spend more time becoming familiar with the inner workings of city government before he’ll be prepared to join the city council.
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