Name a person from a different political party you respect, and why.
Since I'm an Independent I'll name one from each party: Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, for her independence, and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., for her gutsiness, and both for their intelligence.
I've been a Bitterroot Valley reporter for 22 years, and like all reporters I've come into contact with many different people I never would have met otherwise. I've covered the Bitterroot extensively. That includes all four municipal governments, all seven valley school districts, Rocky Mountain Labs, GlaxoSmithKline, agriculture, environmental issues, Forest Service, crime and punishment, and, especially, Ravalli County government. I served on the Ravalli County Board of Health for 12 years, and I served on the board of the Sapphire Community Health Center to obtain federal funding for a sliding-scale clinic for the county's medically uninsured and underinsured citizens. I'm no longer involved with Sapphire Community Health, but I helped establish the foundation for the project, which is active and ongoing. I've also done some volunteer work for the Bitter Root Land Trust.
In a sense, I've been in training for county commissioner for more than two decades. Being a reporter means having to get the facts straight and listening to all sides of a story. It's also made me acutely aware of the issues facing Ravalli County, and it's brought into sharp focus the influence that special interest groups have on county government.
What do you see as the key issues in Ravalli County, and how would you deal with them if you were elected?
There is one key issue from which all other challenges flow: the pressures of population growth and development. To quote a local engineer, Ravalli County's land use policies are built on a foundation of sand. The problems resulting from a growing county with no significant land use policies are well known to Bitterrooters: thoughtless development that is incompatible with the surrounding neighborhood, angry neighbors and lawsuits that are becoming more numerous and more muscular.
There are three initiatives before the community that together will help put the county's future on a more solid foundation. They are zoning, impact fees and a streamside setback ordinance. They won't solve all our problems, of course, because we still need to adopt an air quality protection plan and a water quality district. But they are the only proposals before us and they represent a thoughtful start.
We also should take an independent auditor's recommendation, which has not been addressed by the county commissioners, and hire a chief financial officer to manage our $26 million budget. County government has grown so large and complex over the past 20 years that conducting business as usual with 20-year-old budget and management practices is no longer adequate.
We have to take a reasoned approach to these problems, and we have to work cooperatively as a five-member team for the greater good of the community. Developing sound land use policies, and getting our financial house in order should be thought of as an insurance plan and an investment in our future.
Carlotta Grandstaff
Age: 53
District: 5
Political affiliation: Independent
Profession: Freelance writer
Years in county: 31
Education: One year at the University of Montana
Family: Husband of 27 years, Dennis McIntyre
Pets: Yellow Lab named Ole Butts
|
 |
 |
Add your comment now! Write your comment in the form below.
(Email address is for verification only. If you'd like to email a story, look for the link above)