Two of the three candidates running for the contested Ward 1 seat on the Lander City Council attended a primary election forum Thursday at the Lander Library: Incumbent Councilman Dan Hahn and challenger Kirk Schmidt.
The third candidate – Jenny Young – was unable to make the event due to illness, but she provided a statement that was read before the forum began:
“Thank you for being here today showing your dedication to our city. In Ward 1 it’s time for change. Lander has pressing issues that need proactive solutions. Our community deserves leadership that tackles these challenges directly with a commitment to understanding every aspect before taking action – not just listening to the loudest voices. I am asking for your support to bring this type of leadership to Ward 1.
“Our council, mayor, and staff have done great work to make Lander a wonderful place to live, but we still face challenges that require a problem-solving mindset and difficult, thoughtful discussions. We need to address the city’s basic needs in sustainable ways to secure Lander’s future. We want the next generation – our children raised here – to have the opportunity to grow, thrive, and start their own families right here in Lander. That must become a priority.
“I support the 1 cent sales tax for roads and will ensure Ward 1 gets its fair share of roadwork. I also support the one-half sales tax for the airport, ground transportation, and ambulance services, provided the funds for economic development are used for job creation through an impartial and professional process – no more slush funds for those with connections. I will only support reasonable flood mitigation efforts that are cost effective, nonintrusive and beneficial to Ward 1. I am cautious about adopting national models and will only support planning and zoning that protects our neighborhoods’ integrity.
“I would greatly appreciate your vote this Tuesday to help me advance to the general election in November. I look forward to discussing your concerns and making my case to earn your vote in November. There’s so much more to address after the primary election on Aug. 20th. Thank you for considering me as your voice on the Lander City Council.”
Hahn, Schmidt
Hahn and Schmidt agreed on several of the questions posed to them during this week’s forum.
For example, they both said the city needs to refine its definition of the term “economic development.”
“Right now (it’s) too broad-based,” Schmidt said.
Economic development doesn’t mean “giving me money to compete against (a) business competitor,” he explained – it’s “job creation (and) job retention.”
Primary dollar events also support the economy, but Schmidt said the Lander Chamber of Commerce should take on the main responsibility for promoting those, in “partnership” with the city.
“The city being a partner is different from the city being a leader in that,” he said.
Hahn agreed that the city’s current definition of economic development is “really, really wide, and a lot of people don’t understand it.”
“It sure would be nice to get all of the qualifications for economic development in one pile so everybody sees what they have,” he said.
He also expressed support for infusing more “accountability” into the economic development funding process so applicants can’t receive multiple awards and must return their funding if they sell their business, for example.
“From the beginning … those were my concerns,” he said. “Besides that … I think the program is good.”
Both Hahn and Schmidt also spoke in favor of the “strong mayor” form of government that’s currently in place in Lander, as opposed to the “city manager” setup that’s been contemplated in the past.
Under a city manager system, Hahn said he could see the “administration of the city running the whole town,” whereas a strong mayor can always “rein things in if he thinks it’s needed.”
“Having a mayor as a figurehead (would) be like running a company but the owner has no say-so,” he said. “I totally disagree with that. I think that would be a bad fit here.”
Schmidt expressed skepticism about the city manager form of government, too, noting that it can cause problems if there’s a lot of turnover in the position – like there was when he lived in Rawlins.
“In 17 years, they had six city managers,” Schmidt said. “Tell me what’s good about that system. I mean, that creates more problems.”
The candidates also shared similar views about grant funding from external sources, which they both supported.
“I definitely support (grants),” Hahn said. “But the biggest thing with me is grants are not free money – that’s taxpayer money, and I want it to be spent correctly.”
Schmidt echoed those comments, drawing on his decades of experience working in K-12 administration.
“There were a lot of grants that provided a lot of services,” Schmidt said. “(But) it’s not free money, because you have very strict guidelines on what you can use it for. … I’ve seen too many government entities that decided they were going to play it fast and loose because they thought they could – and ended up paying the money back.”
He added that it’s not up to him to decide “whether I believe in grants,” because the more important question is, “do the citizens of Lander believe the city should be going to get a grant?”
“I could hate (grants), but if the population of Lander wants that … that’s what’s important,” he said. “It’s not about my values – it’s about the values of the people that I represent.”
Those constituents include the entire City of Lander, Schmidt noted – not necessarily just residents of Ward 1.
Hahn said Schmit was “exactly right” about that point.
“When you’re on the council, it doesn’t make any difference whether you’re in Ward 1 or Ward 2,” he said. “People that feel comfortable talking to you will come up and talk to you.”
Hahn said he regularly brings those constituent concerns to the entire council for discussion and potential action.
The council should also consider the concerns of Lander businessowners who live outside of city limits, both candidates said.
“I think it’s very important for the city council to listen to all the businesses in town,” Schmidt said. “They have a vested interest. … They should have a voice.”
Hahn agreed, adding that he also takes input from people who live on the outskirts of Lander.
“As far as I’m concerned … they’re in the community,” he said. “They may not be in town, but they’re here – they’re among us – so I like to hear what they have to say.”
Zoning was another area where the candidates’ opinions overlapped, with both men pointing to the drawbacks of increased housing density in town.
“I don’t really care for it,” Hahn said, speaking from his decades-long experience as a volunteer firefighter. “When you start packing houses in … if you have a fire (it) could get ugly.”
Schmidt built on that point, adding that police and ambulance teams also need space to operate in residential areas.
He also called for more robust planning associated with zoning changes in town.
“If you’re going to rezone, come up with a plan,” he said. “Tell me why you’re rezoning. If it’s to accomplish jamming more people into a lot, I don’t know that that’s a great idea.”
One area where the candidates differed in their opinions emerged when the moderator asked whether the city should partner with government entities in Fremont County and the Wind River Reservation to accomplish joint projects.
Hahn was in favor of the prospect, citing his time working for the Wyoming Department of Transportation – an agency that regularly collaborates with local government entities.
“It’s doable,” he said. “(It) just takes communication. … It’s a matter of getting together and working together and making a plan.”
Schmidt disagreed, however, referring to city, county, and reservation residents as “entirely different populations.”
“The county doesn’t serve anybody in the city, and the city doesn’t serve people in the county,” he said. “There is no advantage to it.”
Schmidt, who has lived in Lander for 22 years, said he decided to run for office about eight months ago, when he heard people expressing “frustration about the word ‘progress’ being used negatively” in town.
“They’re saying, ‘Why are we talking about doing things in Lander that are progressive as a bad thing?’” he recalled. “‘Why are we not trying to improve Lander for the generations to come?’”
Hahn, who has lived in Lander for 48 years, countered that “there’s a fine line between progress and ruining a town forever.”
“People have been moving here because of our way of life, and now they want to change our town drastically,” he said. “Do you want Lander to become another Jackson Hole or California? … This is not what I want, and neither do the long-time locals.”
To watch the entire forum, click here.
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