Flood Insurance, Sewer Upgrade High On The List Of Lincoln County’s Able Candidates
No place else in Lincoln County is producing the political fireworks of Sprague. Here is a roundup of other races:
In Davenport, the question of joining the federal flood insurance program divides Eleanor MacDonald and James Allison, who are competing for a vacancy on the City Council.
MacDonald, 72, thinks the city should fix its sewer system on its own, without federal financing or flood insurance strings that come with it. Allison, 35, said MacDonald mistakenly believes her family’s downtown appliance and floor-covering store would be required to get flood insurance and the city needs federal sewer grants.
MacDonald served 22 years on the council before stepping down two years ago. Now she is convinced the council needs “a mature woman’s opinion” and her “common sense.” She has operated and sold several businesses, including Ellie’s restaurant, and now works with her husband, John, in John’s Appliance.
Allison, a former roofer, is a student at Spokane Community College. He earned a two-year degree in applied science in June and now is working on a fluid power specialist degree. He is a student senator and serves on a Davenport committee that is promoting a new swimming pool. Allison and his wife, Beverly, moved to Davenport five years ago from Spokane. They have three children, ages 3 to 7.
In the city’s other contested race for a council vacancy, former Davenport police Lt. Michael Sullivan is running against retired nurse Donna Batch.
Batch, 78, has lived in Davenport for 11 years. A Spokane native, she has a bachelor’s degree in home economics from Montana State University and a two-year nursing degree from Columbia Basin College in Moses Lake. She has worked in several hospitals, including Othello Community Hospital, where she was nursing director. A widow, Batch has two adult children.
Sullivan, 52, has lived in Davenport off and on since 1975. He has been a police officer most of his life, including eight years with the Washington State Patrol and 10 years with the Davenport Police Department. He is now challenging his December 1994 dismissal from the Davenport department and said he can’t discuss the dispute except to say the police department needs an overhaul.
Sullivan graduated from Central Valley High School in the Spokane Valley, and attended Notre Dame University in Nelson, British Columbia. He is single with two adult children.
In Reardan, Virginia Henderson and Mike Murphy are vying for a council vacancy.
Murphy, 42, moved to Reardan seven years ago from Spokane, where he has worked for Tidyman’s grocery stores for 17 years as a baker. He attended Spokane Falls Community College, Washington State University and Spokane Community College, and has served 1-1/2 years on the Reardan Planning Commission. Murphy and his wife, K.C., have five sons, ages 3 to 11.
Henderson, 39, grew up in Reardan and has lived there most of her life. She holds a bachelor’s degree in microbiology from WSU and is a virologist for the Pathology Associates medical laboratory in Spokane. Henderson and her husband, Tom, have two children, ages 10 and 13.
In Wilbur, political newcomers Don Rolfe and Wally Goddard are competing for a council vacancy.
Goddard, 41, moved there five years ago from Spokane. He earned a general equivalency diploma through Spokane Falls Community College, has been in construction most of his life, and now operates Walleye Construction. Goddard and his wife, Carol, have two children, ages 12 and 14.
Rolfe, 60, grew up in Wilbur and returned there in 1989. He has a bachelor’s degree in mining engineering from Montana Institute of Technology in Boise and has worked in mining most of his life. Rolfe was laid off two years ago as superintendent of Homestake Mining’s Golden Bear Mine in northern British Columbia, and now drives a fuel truck for Vaughan Distributing. He and his wife, Jan, have four adult children.
In Odessa, Tom Clavel and Rebecca Kolterman advanced to Tuesday’s City Council election by out-polling incumbent Councilman Vaughn “Chip” Hunt a three-way primary.
Kolterman, 42, has lived in Odessa about 25 years and manages a family trailer court as well as working as a school cook. She has volunteered for numerous civic projects. Kolterman attended Wenatchee High School and, with her husband, Keith, has an adult daughter and a 9-year-old son.
Clavel moved to Odessa 10 years ago from Chicago and has served on the Planning Commission since January 1995. A graduate of Conant High School in Hoffman Estates, Ill., Clavel has been an equipment operator, truck driver and farmhand most of his life. He currently is maintenance mechanic for Odessa Farming Service. Clavel and his wife, Gwen, have two sons, ages 7 and 18.
Four money measures are also on ballots Tuesday.
Public Hospital District No. 3, based in Davenport, is proposing a 20-year, $2.13 million bond measure that would cost an estimated 38 cents per $1,000 of assessed value. The district would build a 25-unit assisted living center in Davenport for senior citizens, and would add two units to its housing for the elderly in Wilbur.
Park and Recreation District No. 3, also based in Davenport, is proposing two one-year special levies. One, for $50,000, would cost an estimated 38 cents per $1,000 of assessed value and would be used for capital projects. A $25,000 levy, costing 19 cents per $1,000, would go for operating costs.
The town of Creston seeks a two-year, $20,000-a-year levy to buy equipment and maintain streets. The cost would be $5.20 per $1,000 of assessed value.
, DataTimes