Reid’S Still Fired Up About Improving City First Woman On Council Wants Another Four Years

Dixie Reid talks about the projects the city has either planned or has in the works as if she were talking about her own children.

Reid, 56, was the first woman elected to the Coeur d’Alene City Council and said her 18 years on the board provide invaluable experience.

“The work never gets done,” Reid said. “It’s exciting to keep making improvements and making the city a good place to live.”

Incumbents Reid, Ron Edinger, Chris Copstead and newcomers Darrell Dlouhy, Tom Husby, Peggy Sawicki, Bill Wolfe and Jim Brannon are running to fill three empty council seats.

Dave Walker, appointed in June, is running unopposed for a two-year term. All other seats carry four-year terms in the Nov. 2 election.

Reid, an interior decorator and owner of Dixie’s Inside Connection, also has a century of roots in the city to draw from.

“The city has many challenges in the next few years,” she said. “That’s always something the City Council has to do and one of the main responsibilities is to make sure the infrastructure keeps up with growth.”

In her tenure, Reid has watched Coeur d’Alene’s economy change, slow down and boom.

“It’s much easier to govern when there are good times because you have the ability to improve things,” she said.

Reid loves knowing that she has the ability to improve residents’ lives.

“When someone comes in with a problem they can’t get solved and I can help them solve it, that’s the reward,” she said. “The challenge is always keeping in mind the greater good.”

The only part Reid doesn’t like about the City Council is campaigning.

“I don’t like the strategizing, the fund raising and wondering what everybody else is doing,” she said.

Having a field of eight candidates for three positions shows that people care about the city, she said.

“I think it’s good because it shows people are interested in participating in their community and want to give back in some way,” Reid said.

Along with being the first woman elected to the council, Reid also became the second female president of the Association of Idaho Cities.

“I knew if I was going to be effective and pave the way for other women, then I would have to do my homework and understand the issues,” she said.

One issue she worries about is the proposed $6.3 million community center.

To pay for the estimated $800,000 maintenance and operating costs, the center would need to sell about 2,000 annual memberships, said John Austin, city finance director.

Reid said she’s “scared to death” that the center would not be able to continually raise the operating costs.

“If they fail in any way, then the burden falls on the people of Coeur d’Alene,” she said. “Unless we can show we can pay for it, that’s pretty irresponsible.”