Election 2010

Three people are vying for the District 5 seat on Pierce County Council. It is currently held by Barbara Gelman, who must leave office at the end of the year due to term limits. The district covers much of South Tacoma, part of the East Side, Parkland, Midland and part of Spanaway.

Audrey Chase moved to Washington 28 years ago and has lived in this district for 17 years. She owns a home in the North Clover Creek/Collins area.   

Chase is retired. She is raising her granddaughter and does volunteer work, including serving on the board of Gateways for Youth and Family.

Her interest in local politics started years ago when she heard the city of Tacoma was interested in annexing this unincorporated area of the county. She serves as a liaison to Pierce County government representing the community council in her area.

Chase lost a bid for election to the State House of Representatives eight years ago. She was elected to a position on Pierce County Charter Review Committee.

Chase feels the council is distancing itself from citizens. She noted the main meetings used to start at 7 p.m. and now begin at 3 p.m. She complained of meeting agendas being changed at the last minute.

“If you take time off of work to go to a meeting, then they take the item you are interested in off the agenda, you have wasted a whole day and cannot be heard,” she said. “Public input has continued to be cut out of the council. They do not listen. The public no longer counts.”

In light of the county’s financial difficulties, Chase thinks funding public safety must be the top priority. More prosecutors should be hired to clear out backlogs in the courts. Less costly alternatives to incarceration, such as home monitoring, should be used more often, she said. “It is not working anymore to just fill up jail cells.”

More revenue could be generated from fines imposed on developers and other business owners that are never collected because code enforcement must get prosecutors to enforce the collections. Those prosecutors, Chase noted, are too busy dealing with criminal cases.

Chase said this district usually has a Tacoma resident focused on city issues, or a county resident focused on unincorporated areas. “I can be both. I go to Tacoma City Council meetings. I am well aware of what is happening.” She feels she is the best choice for voters because she has worked on issues with people throughout the district, including city of Tacoma staff, and groups in Parkland and Spanaway. “I am aware of what the problems are in each of the different communities.”

Rick Talbert lives on the East Side. He attended Lincoln High School and Western Washington University. He served two terms on Tacoma City Council, from 2002-09. He has worked for Pierce County for the past 21 years, starting in the Assessor/Treasurer’s Office. From 1993-03 he was the staff person assigned to the council member for District 5. He now does performance audits.

Talbert is running because he is concerned about the increasing partisan nature of the council. During the 10 years he was a council staffer, Democrats were in control half the time and Republicans half. Things ran more smoothly back then, he said.

“It seems the county has gotten away from delivering services to citizens because they are too busy fighting with each other,” he said, whether between council members or the council and the executive. “We need to de-politicize county government and solve the problems of the citizens.”

To address the county’s financial woes, Talbert wants it to work better with Port of Tacoma, the state and various city governments. “We need to find solutions to problems regionally,” he remarked. “We are going to have to change the way we deliver services. That will take someone who can work with various agencies.”

An example of this is the Crystal Judson Family Justice Center, which serves domestic violence victims. It is a partnership between the city and county. “That is something we need to do more of.”

Changes to land-use policies and zoning should be made now so the county will be more attractive to businesses when the economy recovers, Talbert said.

Talbert feels his experience and leadership skills make him the best candidate. “I have a proven record. I am the only candidate with a voting record the voters can see,” he said. “I will not have to learn on the job.”

Erich Sachs grew up in University Place. He attended Curtis High School and Evergreen State College. He lives in North Clover Creek/Collins. Sachs works in parks maintenance for Pierce County Parks and Recreation. He is working on a master’s degree in sustainable business practices.

This is his first run for elected office. He is running because in his three years working for the county, he has seen some smaller parks neglected due to budget cuts. “I am watching all of this and decided I want to find more efficient ways to run operations.”

Sachs came up with a recycling program that would have generated enough revenue to pay for itself. When the economy took a nosedive, his superiors put the idea on the back burner. “I want to bring sustainable business ideas to local government, rather than sit on the sidelines and complain.”

Dealing with the county’s financial problems will require innovation, according to Sachs. Using input from employees can lead to efficiencies that will cut spending. “There is a lot of money to be saved in operations,” he said.

Parts of county government are too top heavy, he continued, such as one supervisor for every three workers. “That will need to be addressed at some point.”

“I have a broad view of the whole district, not just Clover Creek,” Sachs said. “District 5 has been underrepresented. I feel I am the person who can change that.”

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