Albany County
Commissioner.
There are
two seats available, each for a four-year term. There are no term
limits. Salary is $20,000 per year plus benefits. Incumbents are Tim
Chesnut (D) and Pat Gabriel (D), who are being challenged by Fred J.
Ockers (R) and Dick Van Pelt (R).
The two who are elected will join Jerry Kennedy (R) who
has two years left on his term.
Biographical
Information:
Tim Chesnut (D): I was born in
Laramie, and have lived here most of my life. My brother Mike and his
wife, Cristina Chesnut, live south of Woods Landing. My parents, Jim
and Bonnie Chesnut, have passed away since my last election, but both
of their mothers are doing well, with Betty Chesnut in Syracuse, Utah,
and Helen Franck in Laramie. My grandfathers, Avery Chesnut and Guy
Franck have also passed away. I am a graduate of Laramie High School
and have attended LCCC and UW. I worked at Café Ole for nine
years, and recently left employment at the Laramie Daily
Boomerang…
Pat Gabriel (D): I was born and raised in Cheyenne,
attended St. Mary's school K-12. Attended
LCCC and the University of Wyoming. I served on the Albany County
School Board from 1981-1986.
I'm currently serving as an Albany County Commissioner,
a seat I have held since 1991. I
have worked for Wyoming Public Radio since 1989 and serve on a number
of boards as a representative of the Albany County Commission. Married, wife is Elena,
daughters Emily and Lily.
Fred
J. Ockers (R):
For the past 46 years, my family has been a member of
the Laramie business community. My wife Debi and I have been married
for 33 years.
During that time, I have been active with various local
and statewide civic organizations. As
chairman of the airport board, I oversaw nearly $15M of improvements
including annexation, waterline extension, and a new sewer line.
Currently, I am working with the airport and government agencies to
bring new industry into Laramie. While
president of the Wyoming Automobile Dealers Association I oversaw the
establishment of a group insurance trust and a dealer franchise law.
Dick Van Pelt (R): Born to a ranching family.
Left ranch to attend UW in 1964-never left -- spent 31
years in banking in Laramie, served on numerous boards including
Cathedral Home for 25 years, helped organize the LEDC and still serve
as Director Emeritus, United Way, Chamber, Cowboy Joe and served on the
State Economic Stabilization Board and Financial Institutions Board. I
live on my ranch with wife, Dianne, where I raise quarter horses and
cattle. Have two grown children & a grandson.
Wyoming has been good to me and I feel it is time to
give back.
If you could increase the
budget for one county department without impacting the others, what
would your choice be? Explain
Tim Chesnut (D): The Road and
Bridge Department would be my funding choice. Any jurisdiction is built
around its infrastructure of transportation and utilities.
It’s the county’s obligation to build and maintain
the roads that link the cities, towns, and subdivisions for access
--both public and private, and to safely maintain the link between
them. Good roads are what a county needs to handle growth and keep the
people moving.
Pat Gabriel (D): Sheriff
Pond will tell you the County is making progress but we still have a
ways to go.
I would increase the Sheriff and Detention Center budget
in order to keep our employees who often times leave for better paying
jobs in the same field. Sheriff
Deputies and Detention officers are so critical to our County that an
increase is justified as they put their lives on the line every day.
Fred J. Ockers (R): I
would subscribe to the principle of achieving a balanced budget and
therefore the question suggests a difficult action. Increasing
any one department’s budget would ultimately have to impact
the other County departments budgets.
I would bring a fair and equitable philosophy to the
budgeting process with a priority to look for ways to operate the
County more efficiently to potentially decrease spending. This
would better serve the taxpayers of Albany County.
Dick Van Pelt (R): This
is a hypothetical question, before making a decision I would get the
facts. I have always tried to reward efficiency and would
probably reward what I thought was the most efficient department, which
was serving the greatest number of citizens with the least resources at
the time.
How can the county have
some control over subdivision developments while considering private
property rights?
Tim Chesnut (D): As a community,
we need to decide what we want Albany County to look like in the
future. Through the Comprehensive Plan to be developed this year, we
hope to identify sensitive areas where we shouldn’t allow
subdividing, such as the Aquifer Protection Zone, or critical habitat
for endangered species. I also encourage public input into issues such
as setting aside land for open spaces or parks, protecting wildlife
migration corridors, and encouraging use of wind and solar energy.
Pat Gabriel (D): Private
property rights are essential to having a viable community. The
County does have regulatory authority for subdivisions under 35 acres
which makes a landowner or developer seek approval from the County
Commissioners.
It's been my experience during four terms in office that
the County and landowners can work together to protect private property
rights and also seek to ensure services such as law enforcement and
fire protection are available.
Fred J. Ockers (R): Growth
is happening not only in the State but in Albany County as well. The question is whether we
have the resolve to guide this growth or just react to it on a case by
case basis.
One solution is to involve residents, of both
ideologies, in a visioning process in the development of Albany
County’s Comprehensive Plan. Incorporate any changes that are
developed into the Albany County Platting and Subdivision Regulations.
Dick Van Pelt (R):
The county already exerts control; but private
property rights would be protected if it were easier to develop smaller
tracts that emphasized more open space. Clearly, adjacent
property owners would benefit by the preservation of open spaces and
enforcement of covenants & properly constructed wells
and septic systems. All this would lead to an
increase in the county tax base which would provide us with a better
budget with which to conduct the county business.