Some forty Salidans got a preview of the next City Administrator when the Salida Town Council hosted a public meet-the-candidates forum at the Salida SteamPlant Theater last night.
On stage in the proverbial hot seat were candidate finalists Robert Campbell, former Archuleta County Administrator; Leslie Klusmire, a project consultant from California who lived on Colorado’s Western Slope for 16 years; and Nederland Town Administrator Jim Stevens.
The audience was largely comprised of current and former city council members and staff, a smattering of county employees and contractors, and a handful of the general public. Those present gleaned insights into the strengths each candidate would bring to the City’s top post during a question and answer forum moderated by Mayor Chuck Rose.
The candidates adroitly answered questions such as how they felt about collaborative partnerships, what they felt were the most important criteria for filling the Administrator post and what they find to be the most difficult aspects being the city’s chief executive.
Differences in credentials were somewhat less obvious even than the stylistic differences between the candidates. Affable, clinical and analytical were the terms one citizen used after the meeting to describe Stevens, Campbell and Klusmire respectively.
The final three audience questions offered the candidates an opportunity to discuss their approach to some of the city’s thorniest issues, namely economic development, affordable housing and historic preservation.
The following are bulletpoint highlights of the candidates responses to those questions.
Economic Development
Klusmire cautioned that cities must be careful about what they ask for when it comes to attracting new business. She said it’s important to be sure new businesses align and support the inherent community character.
Stevens, who served as a municipal economic development director in Kansas, joked that if he could get companies to relocate to Kansas, it would be far easier to convince them to move to Salida. He noted the ways folks used to think about jobs and economic development has changed and the city has to be open to the fact there are many high-wage professionals who work from their homes.
Campbell told the crowd he has served as chair of an economic development board and noted three approaches that board used to address economic development: help expand and grow local businesses, create a business incubator at the local college and development of a “quick response team” that would take action as soon as a prospective new business showed interest in moving to town.
Affordable Housing
Campbell said there are two basic approaches to achieving affordable housing: legislative and incentive-based affordable housing and that cities frequently use a combo of the two approaches.
Stevens said he favors the creation of mixed-use developments and encouraging folks to live downtown. To mitigate neighbors’ concerns about affordable housing, Stevens said it’s important for folks to distinguish between affordable housing which is not the same as low-income housing.
Klusmire said she’s seen towns get in trouble on this issue when they focus on answers before they know the problem they are trying to solve. Only if the town really understands its problems, can they pick the best tools to solve them.
Historic Preservation
Stevens said historic district designation where he used to work in Fort Scott, KS was good for tourism. He said it was also instrumental in getting more people into the core downtown business district, thus increasing business opportunities and sales tax revenues for the city.
Klusmire cautioned that some folks in Glenwood Springs, where she once worked, found “historic preservation” distasteful and little more than another layer of bureaucracy. However, she noted that no city she is aware of ever regretted creating its historic district and that with proper planning, such districts have proven to be economic development boons.
Campbell said another benefit of historic districts is that they open up the possibility of the city seeking additional funding sources such as grants. Such districts, which often include requirements that foster a cohesive blend of old and new construction, create economic diversity.
All three candidates agreed historic district designation can help create a more vibrate downtown community.
The finalists were selected by a search committee comprised of City Council members Keith Baker and Scott Damman plus community development director Dara McDonald, finance director Jan Schmidt, and public works director Rob Vance. Before selecting the finalists, the search committee interviewed eight candidates, including three living in Chaffee County, from among a field of more than 20 applicants. The position was advertised locally as well as in an ad in the Colorado Municipal League newsletter. The search is on schedule, hitting milestones as outlined in the timeline for filling the post vacated by Steve Golnar on April 26.
If all continues to go according to plan, the top candidate will be offered the post later this week with an expected start date within the next month.
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