~by GreeneCountyNewsOnline publisher Victoria Riley
Common sense is important for city council members and school members to have and exhibit. Common sense tells city council members that if there’s a giant pothole at the busiest intersection in town, it should be fixed.
But, in the three decades I’ve been paying attention to what city councils do, common sense isn’t enough. A thriving community has council members who are intelligent, who are smart enough to understand the difference between tax assessments and tax rates, and eventually even understand totally complicated processes like tax increment financing.
Good council members listen politely with an open mind and even when they disagree, they do it without being rude or condescending.
They have the interests of the entire town at heart, not their own business interests.
Most importantly, they have vision. They can look at a vacant block-and-a-half near the downtown and see a new grocery store that will provide jobs and convenience for people of all ages. They can look at other vacant blocks and see affordable multi-family housing that will give people options of where they live.
They can imagine a downtown in which historic buildings are preserved, where pedestrians can enjoy public art and gatherings that draw people from the entire county can be held.
Their vision combines with a willingness to listen to experts for advice on how projects can be funded. They see economic development as a way to improve the lives of all residents, not just those who will own businesses.
In the Nov. 4 city/school election we have candidates whose campaigns are funded by a political action committee, a PAC, calling itself Jefferson Citizens for Common Sense Government. We don’t know a lot about the group. It’s duly registered with the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board; Pauline Allen is chair and Sheila Goodwin is treasurer. The deadline for filing financial statements isn’t until Oct. 30, so we don’t know for a fact who is funding JCCSG.
The ’Common Sense’ PAC is supporting Sue Bose, Eric Carlson and Skeeter Hostetler for the Jefferson city council. I’m sure those candidates each have common sense. They probably don’t leave their car windows down when the weather forecast calls for rain. They probably throw out moldy bologna rather than eat it.
But do they have the vision needed to keep Jefferson on its current course of progress? We know Bose does not, as she has been vocal in her objections to the council leveraging future tax revenue to incentivize downtown development. Carlson and Hostetler are unknowns. We can make assumptions based on their JCCSG support.
Harry Ahrenholtz and Darren Jackson have a track record of being visionary, of studying complicated information and then making decisions in support of progress, not for a few business owners, but for all those who call Jefferson home.
Luke Winkelman is a paramedic for an out-of-county ambulance service and also a small business owner. He listens to all sides of an issue and doesn’t seem to resent successful people, like many of common sense, naysayers do. This city council election is easily the most consequential election in the past 30 years. Let’s get it right. Common sense isn’t enough. I’m supporting Ahrenholtz, Jackson and Winkelman, the candidates with vision.
