Council Candidate Says Time On Her Side Retiree Wants To Improve Parks, Businesses

Editor’s note: This is the third of five articles this week on candidates for Post Falls City Council.

If there’s one thing Betty J. Dougall has in her favor in the race for Post Falls City Council, it’s time.

She boasts that as a retiree, she has plenty of the priceless commodity.

“I’m a senior citizen who has lots of time,” she said in a recent interview. “I’m not encumbered by a 40-hour work week, so I have lots of time to devote.”

She’s one of five candidates running for two seats on the city council. The top two vote-getters at the Nov. 4 election win.

Just because Dougall’s retired doesn’t mean she hasn’t been busy.

She has lived in Post Falls for the past 18 years, volunteered at the Senior Center for 10 of those and serves on the Chamber of Commerce and the Key Communicators Committee for the school district.

Her willingness to research the issues and talk to residents helps her know what’s on people’s minds, she said.

“One of my things is that I want to listen to the people, so things like this survey are very important,” she said, holding a survey published this year by North Idaho College on what Post Falls residents want in their town.

“Overwhelmingly, 69 percent want, I think, to be very careful about what we do with growth,” she said. “We need to plan and develop very intelligently.

“We need to be sure our water and sewer systems aren’t pushed past what they can accommodate.”

She wants the council to consider creating a buffer zone between urban and agricultural areas to preserve the agricultural character of the prairie.

She also encourages using urban renewal districts to entice businesses to develop in Post Falls, Dougall said. Urban renewal districts are areas the city targets for needed improvements.

“We very much need to broaden our commercial base for tax purposes and to provide jobs,” she said.

Along with improving business, she wants to improve parks.

“We need to promote more river access,” she said.

She suggested adding a walkway by the Louisiana-Pacific site near downtown or on Black Bay, property the city owns.

“At some point in time, that property (Black Bay) needs to be developed into a wonderful park to enhance the quality of life,” she said.

A longtime supporter of schools and school bonds, Dougall wants city government to analyze how its decisions affect schools.

“We can either pay up front for good quality education, or you can pay on the down side for welfare and incarceration,” she said.

And she would like to see “state-of-the-art, assisted-living homes for the elderly,” she said.

“I want Post Falls to be a total community - from the cradle to the grave.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: NEW POLLING PLACES Polling places in Post Falls for the Nov. 4 general election have changed. Voters who live from Idaho Street east will vote at the National Guard Armory at 5555 East Seltice Way. Voters who live from Idaho Street west will vote at Oddfellows Hall at 200 East Railroad. Eligible voters who have not registered may do so at their polling sites on the day of the election. In addition to the city council race, the ballot will include a library bond issue and the mayoral race. Mayor Gus Johnson is running unopposed.