GARY MOUNCE AND RICHARD ZETTERVALL, CANDIDATES FOR THE MAYOR OF CRESWELL
What style of leadership does the City of Creswell need right now?
MOUNCE: Collaborative, visionary, able to effectively maneuver through the minutia of city government; ability to stand for all citizens to bring about positive change.
ZETTERVALL: The city council has been working very well together. That is a testament to the leadership of Mayor Dave Stram. I see no reason to deviate from what has been successful. He has fostered an environment of respect, listening and hard work; I plan on doing the same. I want to mobilize a good team atmosphere with a common vision, building consensus through participation and a sense of being a part of something larger than ourselves.
What is one project you were proud to work on while on council that you believe has/will lead to better living in Creswell?
MOUNCE: The airport; housing; transportation; clean economic development; and environmentally conscious practices.
ZETTERVALL: The project that I am most proud of while on city council is the the Niblock Lane street light project. I worked for many months to form a collaboration of government and public agencies, private individuals, local business owners and the Creswell First Foundation to hold the donations. This enabled the purchase and installation of street lights on the only street that serves Creswell HS. What better cause is there to work towards than the safety of Creswell’s students, now and into the future?
Conversely, what is something the council has done or approved within the last fiscal year that you disagreed with.
MOUNCE: The public safety plan.
ZETTERVALL: During work sessions the entire city council works hard to address all questions. The few times that I have had concerns, they were adequately discussed to alleviate my concerns. I cannot think of anything that has been done or was approved by city council that I have disagreed with.
What is the biggest challenge facing Creswell that is not often talked about?
MOUNCE: Affordable housing; treatment for local addicts to help reduce crime; traffic flow to eliminate dangerous intersections; more opportunities for young people; and water quality.
ZETTERVALL: To me that would be the creation of jobs through the development of Creswell’s abundant commercial and industrial lands. Creswell has one of the largest industrial parcels with a close proximity to Interstate-5 in the entire state of Oregon, the former Bald Knob Mill site.
How will you bring awareness to, and address that problem?
MOUNCE: Use of local non profit resources like St. Vincent de Paul to create affordable safe housing; seeking help from local treatment facilities to support treatment; work with ODOT to ensure safer roads; and work with water treatment facility to bring it up to code.
ZETTERVALL: While on city council, I have actively advocated for Creswell. I have set-up meetings with our county commissioners, state legislatures and our U.S. congressional regional directors to bring awareness and importance in developing these properties. I will continue this advocacy and build on these relationships, with the added prestige of being Creswell’s mayor.
What is the biggest challenge facing Creswell that residents are most vocally concerned about? How will you address those concerns?
MOUNCE: Grocery store; water rates; crime rates; and traffic. Support the local markets we have in town; offer low interest loans for established markets to expand and increase their inventory; and develop safety plan and help addicts get treatment to eliminate crime. We are in the process of upgrading and improving the water treatment plant to be in compliance with state requirements. Enforce local speed limits and explore development of another on/off ramps to I-5. We need to bring water and sewage systems to the airport.
ZETTERVALL: The one issue that I am aware of and is vocalized the most, is public safety. It is an issue and concern that I share. The city council will be discussing this at the Nov. 26 work session. At the January 2019 council work session, I will address the entire city council to express the importance of public safety, and will continue working on this very important issue in 2019 until a satisfactory solution is agreed upon.
How will you address Creswell’s land deficiency and price disparity for housing growth?
MOUNCE: Private and public partnerships to develop housing and support League of Oregon Cities lobbying efforts to change the way property taxes impact us all. Research the development of alternative housing accessory dwellings, co-housing programs as well as reasonably priced rentals.
ZETTERVALL: More affordable housing is a crisis in cities all across Oregon – Creswell is not immune. I will continue to keep this as a high priority of mine. I have attended training about missing middle housing, visited local affordable housing projects and put forth the topic of land trust housing for city council to consider. The city council and planning commission recently held a joint meeting and discussed accessory dwelling units as another way to create affordable housing on already existing land. I look forward to continuing this conversation into Creswell’s future.
GARY MOUNCE FOR CRESWELL MAYOR
Age: 68
place of birth: Lafayette, Ind.
Marital status: Married
Spouse/partner/significant other and occupation: Laurel, retired Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA)
Children: Nicole 28, Naomi 40
Residence neighborhood: Emerald Valley
ONLINE: https://sites.google.com/view/garymounce
Party registration: Democratic
Education (degrees, years awarded, institutions): B.A. from Purdue, M.A. from Sacramento State, Business degree from American River College
Occupation(s): Former administrator 34 ½ years
Current employer: Retired from Creswell School District, high school principal
Public sector work experience, including military: Education
Private sector work experience: National Forest Service
Elected office held: N/A
Previous unsuccessful runs for office: N/A
RICHARD ZETTERVALL FOR CRESWELL MAYOR
Age: 66
Place of birth: Portland, Ore.
Marital status: Married
Spouse/partner/significant other and occupation: Linda Warner, retired
Children: two adult children, one daughter and one son
Residence neighborhood: West of Creswell High School
Website, blog, Twitter handle, Facebook page: FB: Richard Zettervall for Creswell Mayor, Mayoral Campaign e-mail, [email protected]; City Council email, [email protected]
Party registration: The mayor position is non-partisan, as such it is not political. My job is to work on behalf of all of the citizens of Creswell. It would be my honor to do just that.
Education (degrees, years awarded, institutions): High School Diploma, Andrew Jackson HS, Portland, Ore; one year biology major, Portland State University; two year certification, offset press operation, Portland Community College; four year journeyman offset pressman training and certification, Moore Litho Portland, Ore; national and state of Oregon certification and licensure as pharmacy technician with one year coursework and internship, Lane Community College, Eugene, Ore. 2010
Occupation(s): Currently volunteering as Creswell City Councilor and City Council President
Current employer: Retired
Public sector work experience, including military: Citizen representative to city of Creswell Public Safety Committee, 2014; City of Creswell Budget Committee 2015 to present; Creswell City Council Representative, Creswell Transportation System Plan Advisory Committee, 2017-2018; City of Creswell Representative to the Lane Council of Governments Board of Directors 2016 to present and executive board, 2018
Private sector work experience: 37 years in commercial printing industry as journeyman pressman and have 10 years upper level management experience. Five years working as a nationally certified pharmacy technician at Walgreens
Elected office held, with dates: Creswell City Councilor, Jan. 11, 2016 to present, with two years being unanimously voted as City Council President
Previous unsuccessful runs for office, with dates: none
