Five candidates seek three CL City Council seats

Published on Clear Lake Mirror Reporter (http://www.clreporter.com)

By clreporter

Created Oct 31 2007 - 2:20pm

Third Ward candidates

BEN FURLEIGH
1) Please supply a brief personal biography as an opening paragraph. Be sure to include information about your family, educational background, occupation and other work/life experiences.
Ben Furleigh, 18 East Gate Court. My wife, Kathy, teaches fifth grade at Clear Creek Elementary School. She’s taught in Clear Lake for 17 years. Next May will be our 20th anniversary. My son, Alex, is 16 and a junior at Clear Lake High School. My daughter, Katy, is 13 and in eighth grade at Clear Lake Middle School.
I graduated from Clear Lake High School in 1983 and from Iowa State University in 1988 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Business. I received my Certified Quality Engineer designation in 1998 from the American Society for Quality.

Occupation and other work experience: I’m presently the Quality Manager at Nortech Systems (formerly Suntron) in Garner. Prior to that, I was Quality Manager at IMI Cornellius in Mason City (five years), Quality Specialist at IMT in Garner (four years), and Quality Inspector at Winnebago (six years). I was raised on a strawberry and vegetable farm on the east edge of Clear Lake.

2) Why have you decided to seek election or re-election:
I’ve had a lot of people encourage me to run and I feel I still have something to contribute. I’ve lived in Clear Lake for 41 of my 43 years – it was a great town to grow up in and raise kids and I want to make sure it stays that way. I may be a little biased, but I’m convinced we have the best downtown in Iowa and I want to help keep the momentum going. I’ve been through a factory shutdown this year with IMI Cornelius - I want to do what I can to make sure no manufacturers in Clear Lake go through the same thing.

3) Job experience or qualifications you feel relate to your candidacy:
As a two-term City Councilman (1996 – 2003) I can hit the ground running and I know what it takes to keep city spending under control while maintaining quality service. As a 14-year veteran of the Quality field I feel I can help the city provide those quality services to the taxpayers. I’ve worked in manufacturing for 17 years – from production worker to senior management. I believe every City Council should have someone on it that understands manufacturing and its value to the community.

4) Please identify the biggest challenge you see facing the city in the short term (1-2 years) and long term (10-20 years):
Short Term: Continue to improve our number one priorities – serving the public safety needs of the community – police, fire, and ambulance, as well as our infrastructure – streets, water, and sewer. “Curb appeal” or the attractiveness of a town has a big impact on people or businesses moving here. The proposed streetscape project around the Surf is very important for improving that curb appeal. Whenever possible we need to make these improvements while holding the line on taxes. We need to change the perception in the area that living in Clear Lake is too expensive.
Long Term: Each year we need to continue adding the storm water filter boxes we started eight years ago and keep up the dredging efforts so that in 10 years we can celebrate seeing the bottom of the lake in July. Predicting the future infrastructure needs of economic development in 10-20 years is not easy, but it is a critical part of our annual strategic planning sessions.

Do you feel the city should: 1) Take the lead on this project and build a golf course? 2) Take the lead on this project by offering all assistance possible to a developer of a golf course? 3) Stay completely out of anything to do with a golf course?
A fourth option would be to let our City Administrator and EDC leadership hammer out the best deal with potential developers and bring it to the Council to weigh the gains against the risks like other projects. The City’s financial incentives should be directly tied to the payback to the community and the risk of the investment based on the developer’s proven track record of success. A privately owned 18-hole golf course would be great to have if it works out, but it’s not a necessity.

7) The City of Clear Lake has been without a franchise agreement with Alliant Energy for more than six years while studying the possibility of creating a municipal utility. What are your feelings on this issue?
Alliant Energy didn’t score any points this summer by refusing to move some poles unless the City signed a franchise agreement - forcing a lawsuit. We may need to survey the public as to their current service quality and determine if it’s worth going to a public vote. We may find people are satisfied with what Alliant Energy provides for the price. I’d like to see more “undergrounding” by Alliant of overhead electric facilities to improve reliability and reduce the number of trees that get butchered all over town.

Additional comments: My commitment to voters is to make sure all citizens get a fair shake. I’ll seek your input and listen to your concerns. I’ll lead with honesty and integrity and handle the city’s money with the same care as my own. I won’t make assumptions without the facts. You can count on me to do my homework before meetings and you’ll always know where I stand on the issues. I don’t have any problem sticking my neck out to support issues or projects that are important to the community. I look forward to the privilege and opportunity to serve Clear Lake again.

MIKE VERDOORN
1) Please supply a brief personal biography as an opening paragraph. Be sure to include information about your family, educational background, occupation and other work/life experiences.
My name is Mike Verdoorn. I am 45 yeas old; I am married with one child. My wife is LuAnn; stepson, Will, is a sophomore at Clear Lake High School.
I have been employed with Mediacom for the past 13 years as a preventive maintenance technician.

2) Why have you decided to seek election or re-election:
I have always been interested in government. I believe that every person needs to do his or her part to make the country a better place to live for the next generation. I also believe that the constitution guarantees every citizen, regardless of social and economic status, race, religion, or moral beliefs the 3) Job experience or qualifications you feel relate to your candidacy:
For the past four years I have served on the Board of Adjustments.
I also serve on the Clear Lake Comprehensive Planning and Steering
Committee. Other than that I am just a blue-collar worker with common
sense who feels that the average, lower to middle-class citizen is
sometimes forgotten in the hustle and bustle of government.

4) Please identify the biggest challenge you see facing the city in the short term (1-2 years) and long term (10-20 years):
I think both go hand-in-hand. We need to continue to do what we
can to clean up the lake. We need to work aggressively to bring jobs
and families to our area. The bottom line is the price of services
will continue to go up year after year. So the choices would be to
raise taxes, cut services or grow your tax base. I think we can grow
our tax base without destroying our community. We have something that
most towns don’t have. At the end of our Main Street we have a
beautiful lake front. The City has done an excellent job of making the
downtown and lakefront very attractive to everyone. Now we need to
concentrate on using another great asset to attract business and people
to our great community and that is Interstate 35 and the Avenue of the
Saints.

7) The City of Clear Lake has been without a franchise agreement with
Alliant Energy for more than six years while studying the possibility
of creating a municipal utility. What are your feelings on this issue?
I believe that it is not the role of government to compete in the
private business sector. It would cost the City millions of dollars to
buy Alliant’s existing plant and several million dollars to build a new
plant. What needs to happen is the City and Alliant need to sit down,
find out exactly what each needs and work out a deal.
Additional comments: None.

First Ward candidate

SHANE COONEY
1) Please supply a brief personal biography as an opening paragraph. Be sure to include information about your family, educational background, occupation and other work/life experiences.
I have spent the majority of my life in Clear Lake, moving here when I was five. I graduated from Clear Lake High School and then went on to attend the University of Northern Iowa. I later attended Buena Vista University, where I graduated with a degree in business management. I am a Financial Advisor with Raymond James & Associates in Mason City. I have worked in the financial services industry for the last 10 years. Prior to my current service on the Clear Lake City Council, I served on the Clear Lake Parks and Recreation Board of Directors and was Vice President of the North Central Iowa Chapter of Habitat for Humanity. I currently serve on the Clear Lake/Ventura Community Foundation Board and am an active volunteer with the Clear Lake Chamber of Commerce, currently serving as co-chair of the “50’s in February” Committee. My wife, Kelly, is a Kindergarten teacher at Sunset School. I have a five-year-old daughter, Riley, and a son, Wil, who is in second grade.

2) Why have you decided to seek election or re-election:
I am currently nearing completion of a two-year term on the City Council (1st Ward), which was the seat vacated by Dave Solberg when he ran for and won the at-large seat in 2005. The two years have been both challenging and very rewarding. I have enjoyed studying the governmental process and look forward to applying all that I have learned-- should I be re-elected-- to a four-year term. Most rewarding for me has been seeing a number of the projects that I was fortunate enough to be involved with from the beginning come to fruition. In particular, I am very proud to have seen the City Beach enhancement project from its beginning, as a concept, to the final product that was completed earlier this year. During my first term, we also had the task of replacing long-time Chief of Police Dan Jackson. I believe the selection process we employed led us to the best candidate and a top-notch Chief in Greg Peterson. I am also pleased to have been a part of a number of public/private partnerships that together are working to make Clear Lake an even better place. The CLEAR project, City/County/State governments, and private individuals are all working together to help ensure that our Lake remains a beautiful place. Pine Brooke, a subdivision designed to provide mid-level priced homes, will attract young families to our community and school district. Park Centre rejuvenated one of the marquee blocks in our city and has proven to be very successful.
All of these things together, and so much more, have fueled Clear Lake’s momentum and make me look forward to the opportunity to contribute in whatever meaningful way I can to further that momentum.

3) Job experience or qualifications you. feel relate to your candidacy:
As a financial advisor with Raymond James, I work with individuals, businesses, and foundations to plan and forecast for the future. I help my clients understand how the decisions that they make today will impact their long-term goals. Similarly, I have had the opportunity during my first term on the City Council to apply those same concepts of fiscal responsibility to the City’s financial policies.
After having served one term on the City Council, in addition to my previous service on the Clear Lake Parks and Recreation Board, I am confident that I have the necessary background to serve our community.

4) Please identify the biggest challenge you see facing the city in the short term (1-2 years) and long term (10-20 years):
Clearly the biggest challenges facing the City of Clear Lake are broader than just those facing the City government. While there are challenges confronting the City government on both a short and long-term perspective, including such matters are the construction of a new fire station, completion of the Lake dredging project, and updating of obsolete and aged infrastructure, there are many other issues that will necessitate the involvement of the City government that one may not traditionally associate with the work of the local government.
For example, one of the biggest challenges facing the community is the creation of new employment opportunities (i.e., economic development). The City of Clear Lake, along with other government and private partners has finished the physical development of a new 65-acre industrial park. I believe it is imperative that when a new or exciting business or industry looks at locating or expanding in Clear Lake we are “ready to go.” As a City Council member, I supported the development of this new industrial park so that Clear Lake would have a competitive advantage when it comes to facilitating job growth. The City and Economic Development Corporation have worked well together to enable business growth and expansion and the development of a new industrial park will provide the community with an opportunity to grow.
Additionally, communities across the state are experiencing a decline in “Main Street” retailing. While Clear Lake has not suffered similar losses as other communities, we do have some empty buildings downtown. I want to make sure that the City, working with the Chamber of Commerce, does what it can to ensure that Clear Lake maintains a viable and diverse downtown business district. As a Council Member, I supported the redevelopment of the 200 block of Main Avenue, 1st Avenue North and 1st Avenue South streetscape improvements, and the redevelopment of the City Beach area. I want to continue to make sure that Clear Lake’s downtown and vicinity remains a great place to work, recreate, shop, and in some cases, live!
Lastly, I am concerned with the availability of sufficient housing opportunities in Clear Lake for families and seniors (especially those on fixed incomes). I want to make sure that Clear Lake is positioned to compete effectively with its neighboring communities for families and do not want a lack of sufficient housing opportunities to negatively impact our population and adversely effect our school system’s enrollment.

5) A new 18-hole golf course is still a topic of conversation in Clear Lake. The Clear Lake Economic Development Corporation and the Clear Lake Area Chamber of Commerce have it high on their list of items they’d like to see accomplished in Clear Lake. Do you feel the city should: 1) Take the lead on this project and build a golf course? 2) Take the lead on this project by offering all assistance possible to a developer of a golf course? 3) Stay completely out of anything to do with a golf course?
I believe that the Economic Development Corporation should be the primary “lead” in recruiting any prospective developers for such a project. Should a “self-sustaining” proposal emerge and come before the City Council for consideration, the City should treat it not any different than it would any other economic development opportunity -- assessing the potential economic impact of the development proposal and offering whatever assistance may be feasible based upon the individual merits of the project.
The significance of the former Iowa National project was not simply the 18-hole golf course component, which would have been operated by a private entity, but rather all the other private investment and development that it might have leveraged, such as the new housing development opportunities and significant potential commercial development with the roughly $8 million Stoney Creek Inn and other commercial components.

6) Voters are being asked in this election to raise the community’s hotel/motel tax by 2 percent, from 5 to 7 percent. City officials have designated 1.5 percent of the proposed 2 percent raise to fund its $2 million commitment to the Lake Dredging and Restoration Project and other lake improvement initiatives in the future. The remaining .5 percent would be used to fund the maintenance of permanently located recreational, cultural or entertainment facilities within Clear Lake. Do you support the tax increase? What are your ideas for spending the .5 percent?
Yes, I do support the increase. Absent an increase in the hotel/motel tax rate, the burden of paying for the City’s share ($2 million) of the Lake Restoration Project (i.e., dredging of the “Little Lake” area) would shift to the local property taxpayers. In the diagnostic study that was done by Professor John Downing, Iowa State University, regarding the Clear Lake Restoration Project, he indicated that visitors to Clear Lake were willing to share in the cost of the restoration effort. The proposal to increase the hotel/motel tax rate by 2 percent would not create an undue hardship on the community’s visitors and would mitigate the property tax impact of the project on local residents and property owners. As far as the additional .5 percent is concerned, I think there are many worthy recreational, cultural, and entertainment opportunities upon which these additional funds could be directed. I think it is important, however, that the City can see a tangible return on its investment in whatever proposal the City Council chooses to fund.

7) The City of Clear Lake has been without a franchise agreement with Alliant Energy for more than six years while studying the possibility of creating a municipal utility. What are your feelings on this issue?
At the center of this whole issue is better service and cost-effectiveness. If we can achieve those things through a “flexible” franchise agreement, then great. But if not, we should be free to make a choice as a community. Although City officials continue to negotiate in good faith with Alliant Energy representatives towards achieving a “mutually-beneficial” franchise agreement, if negotiations prove unsatisfactory, then we should ensure that other opportunities are thoroughly investigated and not foreclosed.

Additional comments: None

At-Large candidates

MIKE CALLANAN
1) Please supply a brief personal biography as an opening paragraph. Be sure to include information about your family, educational background, occupation and other work/life experiences.
I grew up in Clear Lake with my family on the Callanan side running a local pool hall and on the Heitland (mother’s) side farming. I was educated in the local schools and graduated from the University of Northern Iowa in 1971 with a degree in History. I taught at Woden-Crystal Lake and Buffalo Center from 1971-1979 before returning home in 1979 to fulfill a lifelong dream of teaching in my home town.
I taught Economics and American History along with coaching football, track, boys and girls basketball, baseball and tennis during my 28 years with Clear Lake High School.
My wife, Cathy, has been an RN at Opportunity Village for 26 years. We have three children including, Adam a teacher at Mason City High School, and his wife, Susan, an instructor at NIACC. They have our two grandchildren, Eddie and Chloe. Abby, our daughter, is a kindergarten teacher in Omaha where her husband, Bryan, works for Coca Cola. Our other son, Casey, works at First Insurance while his wife, Hunter, works for Clear Lake Telephone.

2) Why have you decided to seek election or re-election:
I am a fourth generation Clear Laker and have enjoyed growing up in and raising my family here. I really love this community and feel it has been really good to me and my family. I recently retired and feel I am in a position to give some service back to our wonderful city. I feel the city has made great strides in recent years and I would love to have an opportunity to help keep that going if elected.

3) Job experience or qualifications you feel relate to your candidacy:
   As a teacher of almost all social studies disciplines including economics and government for 36 years I understand the importance of fiscal responsibility in government, as well as the workings of a representative democracy.
   As a nearly life-long resident of Clear Lake I feel I have a good background of the ebb and flow of the community.
   I have had some experience on an elected board having served four-three year terms on St. Patrick’s Parish Council.
   In my career as a teacher and a coach I have worked with thousands of individuals and hundreds of groups of people. I have found very few situations where experiences in working with people and listening skills do not serve you well. I feel I have both of those.

4) Please identify the biggest challenge you see facing the city in the short term (1-2 years) and long term (10-20 years):
   In the short term I feel the city needs to complete the infrastructure improvements which are in progress or in the planning stages. These would include the proposed water tower, street and sewer improvements, and the storm water filtrations systems and commitment to the lake quality initiatives.
   The lake also heads the list for the long run as it will continue to help define the prosperity of the community. This and improved infrastructure which will allow us to continue to put our best foot forward are important.
   I think the expanding needs of our Fire and Rescue teams need to be looked at, as well as maintaining a positive partnership among the City Government, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Economic Development Corporation.
   A vibrant community is usually a growing one so we need to continue to work at attracting employers and businesses that can provide jobs to maintain our most valuable resource, our young people.

7) The City of Clear Lake has been without a franchise agreement with Alliant Energy for more than six years while studying the possibility of creating a municipal utility. What are your feelings on this issue?
   Without all of the facts on this issue I am not sure I can comment with any level of detail. Although it might be very convenient to have local service for our energy needs I would be very wary of the cost incurred in building the necessary infrastructure to offer this.
   Generally due to economies of scale, a well regulated utility can offer the lowest cost per unit when serving a large customer base.
   I would be willing to listen to all proposals but we need to consider the best value for the Clear Lake Citizens.

Additional comments:
I have attended several Council Meetings since announcing my candidacy and have already observed how much time and effort this position demands. I feel I am in a position to provide that effort and look forward to the opportunity if the good people of Clear Lake happen to elect me.

DON PEDELTY
1) Please supply a brief personal biography as an opening paragraph. Be sure to include information about your family, educational background, occupation and other work/life experiences.
My name is Don Pedelty, and I am running for the At-Large seat for City Council in Clear Lake. I have lived in Clear Lake nearly all my life.
After graduating from Clear Lake High School, I continued my education at North Iowa Area Community College. I then graduated from Brown Institute in Minneapolis, Minn., with a Radio Communications degree. After graduating from Brown, I returned home, to Clear Lake and started working at the KZEV radio station. I enjoyed working with the people in Clear Lake while on the air at KZEV until it was sold. After that, I owned and operated Shineway Cleaning Services with my brother-in-law, Dan Lloyd, for more than 10 years. I am presently employed by Andrews Prestressed Concrete, Inc., as a Quality Control Inspector and Safety Director.
I am a member of the Clear Lake Noon Lions Club, and I serve as a musician on two praise teams at Zion Lutheran Church.
My wife, Rebecca, and I have three children, nine-year-old Jonah, eight-year-old Samuel, and six-year-old Jacob.

2) Why have you decided to seek election or re-election:
To serve the community of Clear Lake as a Council member would be a great way to use my talents and abilities to get involved with a town I am passionate about. My family roots run deep in Clear Lake, and I would enjoy being a part of the decision-making process for Clear Lake’s future.

3) Job experience or qualifications you feel relate to your candidacy:
To be a good employee in any field, one must be willing to work hard and be able to do the job at hand effectively. I feel that has been the case in every job I have held. For example, I am currently a Quality Control Inspector at Andrews Prestressed Concrete, Inc., a family-owned and operated company in Clear Lake for nearly half a century. One of my main duties is to maintain a high quality standard in the products we produce. I will have that same commitment to quality and values as a Council member.

4) Please identify the biggest challenge you see facing the city in the short term (1-2 years) and long term (10-20 years):
There is no doubt that the completion of the lake dredging project is the number one short term goal. The City Council, mayor, and the state will be working very diligently in making that project a success. The construction of a new fire station is needed to replace the current one, as it is outdated and outgrown. As a former member of the fire department I know that it is crucial that proper measures are taken to keep these departments running their optimum potential. Of course, the future of Main Street is also critical. We need to keep the working relationships healthy between the Chamber of Commerce and the business owners to ensure Clear Lake’s Main Street is economically sound.
Both short term and long term goals would certainly include creating new jobs and completing the new industrial park. We need to aggressively market Clear Lake as a place for new companies to locate and grow their business, but in doing so, not forget those companies who have already established a good working relationship with the people of Clear Lake. Maintaining decent, affordable housing for our citizens, as our population continues to grow is important. We need to make sure we are doing all we can to provide affordable, safe and adequate housing opportunities for our community of Clear Lake.

5) A new 18-hole golf course is still a topic of conversation in Clear Lake. The Clear Lake Economic Development Corporation and the Clear Lake Area Chamber of Commerce have it high on their list of items they’d like to see accomplished in Clear Lake. Do you feel the city should: 1) Take the lead on this project and build a golf course? 2) Take the lead on this project by offering all assistance possible to a developer of a golf course? 3) Stay completely out of anything to do with a golf course?
Quite honestly, I am not an avid golfer. I live near a golf course, but rarely use it. Clear Lake has been blessed with three wonderful golf courses, but I am not in favor of a city owned golf course. If a private group or company want to operate and maintain a golf course without public expenses from the taxpayers, I would be in favor of that. It would be great for the community to see commercial and housing opportunities develop around that idea, but I don’t think the city should take on such a project.

6) Voters are being asked in this election to raise the community’s hotel/motel tax by 2 percent, from 5 to 7 percent. City officials have designated 1.5 percent of the proposed 2 percent raise to fund its $2 million commitment to the Lake Dredging and Restoration Project and other lake improvement initiatives in the future. The remaining .5 percent would be used to fund the maintenance of permanently located recreational, cultural or entertainment facilities within Clear Lake. Do you support the tax increase? What are your ideas for spending the .5 percent?
As part of the CLEAR Project, one of my main goals is to restore the water quality to what the lake once was. I support the increase in the hotel/motel taxes. According to research, visitors to Clear Lake will be willing to contribute to the overall cost and restoration of this project. I don’t think the entire expense of the $2 million project should come solely from the property owners in Clear Lake. I also think there are other areas in Clear Lake that need some financial assistance, and that .5 percent could provide a source to contribute to those areas without using property tax dollars. I would be open to and flexible in using these funds as along as they were spent according to voter approval.

7) The City of Clear Lake has been without a franchise agreement with Alliant Energy for more than six years while studying the possibility of creating a municipal utility. What are your feelings on this issue?
I believe the city should be open to the possibilities of a franchise agreement with Alliant Energy. If the City cannot negotiate an agreement that would benefit the people of Clear Lake, than I feel they should look at other options. A couple of things that could be beneficial to Clear Lake are going underground with the overhead electric lines and having a local office to help with customer complaints and questions.

Additional comments: None.

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