Two run for mayor

With election ballots headed to voters this week, residents of the Town of Cathlamet find themselves with a choice for mayor.

Former Council Member John Hannah was the only candidate to file in the May filing period. Now resident George Wehrfritz has started a campaign for the position as a write-in candidate.

Wehrfritz retired earlier this year as economic writer and Hong Kong bureau chief for Newsweek Magazine. He is now working as a research analyst for Saratoga Research and Intestment Management company. He and his wife have owned a house in Cathlamet for eight years. He earned a bachelor degree in economics at University of California/Davis in 1985.

Hannah has been a teacher for nine years, eight in the Wahkiakum School District. He has also coached wrestling and football and is a member of the Cathlamet Fire Department. He and his wife have two children.

Following are questions The Eagle posed to the candidates and their responses.

Why run for mayor?

Wehrfritz: Our town needs quality leadership at this critical juncture in its history. I hope to work closely with the town council to improve the local economy, meet fiscal challenges and complete vital projects.

The challenge for us is that you don't have a flood of people going into local government. There's no money in it. If you do something wrong, you get pilloried. If you surrender, you're going to get bad government.

Hannah: I feel that I can be a benefit for the town. I want to work for the town and be a part of the solution for issues that come up for the town.

I really do want to get back into it and do it. I enjoy being part of the decision making process.

We have a good council that has a vision of where they want things to go.

The time issue--I resigned before because my family commitments didn't allow me to be there. Family will always come first. There are different ways to be mayor. I enjoy being busy; I manage time well; I work well with the employees. I want to be part of the process. I have good insights.

What do you hope to accomplish?

Wehrfritz: 1. Reenergize Main Street by encouraging new private business creation. 2. Renovate Town Hall to enhance its status as the center of community life. This should be a self-help effort not reliant on high-valued grants from the state or federal government.

3. Oversee planning and construction of a new sewage treatment plant with the smallest possible impact to sewage rates and households in the town. The cost and scope of current plans is understandably of major concern to the community. Mindful of that, we must move ahead rather than delay for additional years.

Hannah: One of my goals as mayor is to make sure the town is efficient in what it does, and ready for whatever may come our way. I also plan to work with the current town employees to find out what works and what doesn’t.

I want to make sure that each town employee knows that they are the face of the town when someone comes to the office or is working with someone from public works.

What do you consider the major issues the town is facing, and how should the town address them?

Wehrfritz: 1. The economy. Unemployment is tragically high, a high proportion of our local businesses have closed and job creation has largely stopped. That said, we have a new coffee shop, and work is underway on the Columbia Saloon – both of which exemplify the private sector efforts the town should further encourage. In my view, the town could – and should – do more to attract and retain businesses. The alternative is that Main Street could look more and more like a ghost town.

I would also question the use of the lower level of the town hall as commercial space once it is refurbished; the town shouldn't be in competition with private business.

2. The sewage plant: The mayor and council have made a lot of headway against a strong wind and should be commended. We need a team to proceed. At every single juncture, we need to see if there is a cheaper way to do it.

3. The Bradwood Landing liquefied natural gas plant. If completed, the facility will do long-term damage to Cathlamet and Wahkiakium County. It will undermine tourism, damage the environment and expose us to potentially catastrophic danger. I believe the current negotiations to provide security for the plant underway between our county sheriff and the LNG company are misguided and should stop. I also think local political leaders owe it to voters to say whether they are for or against the project rather than sitting on the fence opportunistically. If you favor LNG, don’t vote for me.

Hannah: The town has several issues facing it, and many of them are the same as they have been--waste water treatment plant, dealing with the current economy, struggles between how to grow and how to keep Cathlamet the town we love and chose to live and work in. It is important that the council and I are open to all solutions.

With the waste water treatment plant, you have to keep going down all the possible paths, such as having a private operator.

On economic issues I have two points. 1. If we can grow the waste water treatment system, we have the opportunity to hire more people. 2. We have to look at what kind of businesses work here and work with employers, the economic development council and the county to support them. We have to work with our partners and match what we do well to businesses that need those resources.