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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Valley&State Backpage O&E Sports Archives Classifieds Faith&Beliefs Obituaries Revels August 2, 2004 As deadline nears, more join race By Bill Choy Ashland Daily Tidings Things are picking up with those planning to run for the open mayor and city council positions in Ashland. Until mid-July, there were only a few candidates; however, as of Friday, a week before the filing deadline, five new people have turned in their papers to run. The deadline to register to be a candidate is this coming Friday. Steve Hauck, who served on the city council for eight years until 2001, is running for mayor, along with Joajuin Saloma, head of stock at Rare Earth. Jack Hardesty, co-founder of Citizens for Responsible Government, is running for council seat one to oppose current councilor Don Laws. Russ Silbiger, who is on the Ashland Fiber Network Advisory Committee, and Tom Giordano, a former Ashland Planning Commissioner, are running for seat five, which will be vacated by John Morrison who is running for mayor. Gary Smith, a manager at Market of Choice who once ran for mayor and lost is also running for seat five. Planning Commissioner Mike Morris is running against incumbent Cate Hartzell for seat three. Current Mayor Alan DeBoer said he is not running for reelection. There's a good possibility that more will join the race by the Friday deadline. About four people have asked for registration forms, but have not turned them in yet, City Recorder Barbara Christensen said. Those wanting to run need at least 25 signatures, said Christensen. The race for mayor Since leaving the council in 2001, Hauck has carefully watched the council from the sidelines. He believes it is now time to offer his expertise to the city once again. Hauck was born and raised in Ashland. He is currently the executive director for the Upper Rogue Community Center in Shady Cove. He served for 10 years on the Rouge Valley Transportation District Board, the City of Ashland and the Ashland School District budget committees. One of Hauck's main concerns is that more families and younger people are moving away or not coming to town because of the high cost of living. "It's the leading indictor of the even bigger issue of the narrowing of diversity in Ashland," he said. "When you start to lose this diversity, you lose voices and different perspectives in the community. Diversity is the best thing for the health of a community." As mayor, Hauck would like to see people from all walks of life come forward and work with the city on the issues affecting the community. He said many good ideas came from residents during his time on the council. "I want to make sure we have broad levels of different ideas from throughout the community," Hauck said. "When you only have one cultural perspective, you can lose out on good ideas." He would also like to encourage more neighborhood organizations. "They give a kind of cohesiveness to the neighborhoods," he said. "It gives people a way to have an effect on where they live." In addition to Morrison and Hauck, a third candidate is determined to make it a race. Saloma, 24, says he wants to make sure that the local voices of the people of Ashland are heard in city government. Saloma, who is head of stock at Rare Earth in Ashland, did not want to comment further until the filing date closes on Friday. City council Giordano, 59, has lived in Ashland for 18 years and owns his own architectural firm. He served on the Jackson County Planning Commission from 1990 to 1994 and on the Ashland Planning Commission from 1996 to 2000. He is currently on the Historic Commission. He also has served as an interim planning director for the residents of Talent and Jacksonville. Giordano believes it's vital to be active in what goes on in Ashland. "I make my living in this community and it's important to give something back," he said. "This is my way of returning the favor and it keeps you in touch with what goes on in town." His years of experience on the planning commission give Giordano experience and knowledge that will help him in the council, he said. "The decisions you're going to make are based on understanding the community," he said. "It helps that I have an understanding of how the city works, and I think it's important to keep an open mind. I'm one who wants to work with the community and look at all sides of an issue." Giordano said the important issues that are facing the city include land-use planning, growth, development and how money gets distributed for projects. "You have to have a balance in keeping Ashland precious," he said. "But you need to find the right balance in allowing the right types of development to occur." Giordano will be challenged by Smith, who earlier announced his candidacy and Silbiger, 46, an active presence in Ashland city government since arriving in town 13 years ago. Silbiger is on the Ashland Fiber Network Advisory Committee, has served on the city budget committee, writes about the city for the free monthly Sneak Preview and was on the board of directors of Community Works. He works as an investment manager. "I wanted to move my responsibilities to the city up a notch," he said. "I criticized the council on a number of issues, so I wanted to step up to the plate to see if I can do better." Silbiger said he almost ran for city council 10 years ago, but decided to have someone who lived in the town longer run. He did run for a seat on the Parks Commission, because he wanted a dog park in town, but he lost. "I lost the election, but we got a dog park, so I guess I won the war," he said. He strongly believes that the biggest issue facing the city is losing families because of a lack of affordable housing. "When I see that we're losing kids in the school district and schools are closing, I can't think of a more important issue than maintaining a healthy community," he said. "That's a big red flag for me. It's not healthy for the community to lose families. Communities need to be diverse. I don't want to see this community turn into a Carmel or a Santa Fe." He would also like to see more accountability in local government and for the community to be more involved. "I don't want to go into the council with this huge agenda," he said. "The city doesn't need radical change. It needs good steering and that's what I want to do." Like Silbiger, Hardesty, 75, is no stranger to Ashland politics. He is a founding member of Citizens for Responsible Government, which opposed the Bemis project, a building complex proposed for downtown that the council rejected earlier this year. It is currently on appeal with the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals. He has served as president of the advisory board of Southern Oregon University's Schneider Museum of Art and helped found the Ashland Gallery Association and the Asian Arts Society. Hardesty currently volunteers at the Jackson County Democratic Party headquarters in Medford. Before moving to Ashland 10 years ago, he worked for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Public Health Service, and helped draft federal health legislation. "I've got some ideas I'd like to implement and I think it will be better to get them done inside the system, rather than outside the system," he said. Hardesty would like to see advisors be brought in to help with the economic development in Ashland. "In my experience, if you want something done, you go to professional people who have a good track record in this," he said. Hardesty is concerned about affordable housing in town and hopes that better economic stability will bring in better paying jobs and retain younger people in the community after they graduate from college. If elected, Hardesty would like to start a cultural commission to bring more arts, theater and dance into the community. "Ashland is really a cultural mecca in the Pacific Northwest," he said. "It ought to support the arts across the board." He would also like to see more public input in city government and to have more citizens involved. "How else can you have an effective city if people are not involved in the decision making process?" he said. DailyTidings.com Home Page Valley&State | Backpage | O&E | Sports | Archives | Weather | Classifieds Columnists | Faith&Beliefs | Obituaries | Revels | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2004 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Click Here Site Search: .:Advertisements:. 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