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53 °F Forecast | Road Cams Friday, January 28, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Opportunities Moving to Southern Oregon? MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend October 11, 2004 Talent City Council race stems from one issue By BUFFY POLLOCK for the Mail Tribune TALENT — All three candidates for the City Council’s one contested seat in the Nov. 2 election agree on one thing: The city’s services need to grow with its population. To what extent sets the candidates apart. At the issue’s core is a proposed $5 million bond on the Nov. 2 ballot to construct a new civic center. City officials initially set out to ask for $8 million, but architects scaled the project down by $2 million after a survey revealed residents were leery of the price tag. If the measure passes, urban renewal would kick in an additional $1 million to make up the cost difference for the $6 million project. Incumbent Wendy Siporen supports the civic center because of the city’s need for increased services, a community meeting space, more office space for staff and better storage for the police department. But she said the project might have been better received by taxpayers if it had been presented in two phases. Advertisement "Given the unexpectedly large price tag, I think the project probably could have been done in two stages — the first to meet immediate needs and then expanded later on — to make it more affordable for property owners," Siporen said. The 20-year bond will cost voters $2.62 per thousand of assessed value, or $393 a year on a $150,000 home. A 38-year-old former Mail Tribune reporter, Siporen was appointed in April 2003 and has served on the urban renewal agency board and economic development, enhancement, harvest festival and traffic safety and transportation committees. "There’s a lot going on and I feel like I’m just getting started with things," she said. "I feel like I’m the candidate with experience in city government and with great listening and observing skills." Challenger E.J. McManus II agreed that the city needed to keep up with growth, but he hoped to see it keep its "everyone knows their neighbor" feel. The 23-year-old full-time student and office assistant moved to Talent two years ago. McManus said the civic center was justified but expensive. "A lot of people are worried about the price tag on it, but I think that for a long time Talent hasn’t asked for a big thing like that," he said. "Our community is going to grow and everyone has different wants and needs, and I think it’s going to be a great challenge to balance that and keep Talent great." Challenger R.C. Davis said he needed more information to determine whether the civic center project was appropriate. But the 56-year-old did feel certain that increased growth warranted upgrades to services and infrastructure. A Rogue Valley native and U-Haul dealership owner, Davis moved to Talent nine years ago. "I know my little town here," he said. "I may not know every one of the issues going on right this second, but those are easy to get a handle on. � "I’m very pro-business. I think we need to look at what’s going on with our growth in town," he added, noting that construction has boomed since a building moratorium was lifted two years ago. Also running, but uncontested, are William Smart for Seat 2; Dawn Watson for Seat 3; and Brian Roberts for Seat 6. Buffy Pollock is a free-lance writer living in Medford. E-mail her at [email protected]. Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers