I am supporting Jack Fallon for Flathead County commissioner. He has served as president of the Evergreen Fire District where he successfully worked to build a new fire station. While as president and a member of the Evergreen Water and Sewer Board, he garnered grassroots support for a new sewage collection system. He has served as vice chair of the School District Five School Board where he is currently chairman of the Finance Committee and Technology Committee. With a successful career in finance along with his fiscal and management skills, he has the experience, people skills and credentials the commission needs.
Jack understands the importance of open discussion. He researches an issue before coming to a decision and won’t make appointments to boards without input from a variety of sources. He believes in compromise and listens to multiple points of view before making a decision. He believes in transparency and in civility. He treats everyone with respect. He believes in the importance of recreation as shown by his life-long support of youth soccer and hockey. He is also a fiscal conservative.
Over the last years, Pam Holmquist and her fellow commissioners have made some disastrous decisions. They have illegally permitted the “Bridge to Nowhere,” approved the resort on Lake Five and provided a contested permit for a water bottling plant that has cost the county and individuals thousands of dollars in legal battles. Their appointments to the library and health boards have created chaos, distrust, and resignations. While Flathead County has the fastest growing population in Montana, the commissioners failed to create and manage an adequate budget. They turned down requests for more sheriff’s deputies and turned away $500,000 per year from revenue on recreational and medical cannabis made available by the state. They rejected a trail plan despite overwhelming community support.
We need new leadership to create a new county jail, to fund the sheriff’s department, maintain our roads, support a trail system, and address issues of affordable housing. It’s time for change. Jack Fallon has the expertise and personal fortitude to make change happen.
Carol Santa
Kalispell