Candidate Q&A: Door County Board of Supervisors

Roy Englebert (District 3)

Why do you want to serve on the Door County Board of Supervisors and what areas of expertise do you bring to the board?

It is a privilege to be able to live in Door County, Wisconsin and retire on my home farm. With this privilege comes responsibilities to ensure that the way of life we have can continue to improve, grow and prosper.

What is the biggest issue Door County faces at this point in the 21^st century, and how can it be addressed?

Environmental issues, such as clean water and clean air, are an ongoing concern. Protecting the water quality in Door County is more difficult because Door County is located on the Niagara Escarpment. Strong state legislative action is required to address this issue as the soil is different throughout the state and this needs to be taken into consideration when passing legislation.

Are there any projects on the county’s plate that you would like to see accomplished during your term?

The needs of EMS and the ADRC facilities must be addressed. This is a project currently being considered.

Please share your thoughts on actions at the state level that either limit local control or put a damper on a county’s ability to conduct its business, for example, revenue caps, slashing of shared revenue, changes to shore land zoning inserted into the 2015-17 budget and the recently passed AB 582, which removes local authority to enact temporary moratoriums on rapid industrial development.

It appears to be a common practice in passing federal and state legislation to include only one statement that changes the regulations. This makes action extremely difficult for local governments to comply. Many revisions are required to completely interpret and describe the intent of the legislative rules.

The county is facing the double-whammy of an aging population and an exodus of the county’s best and brightest young people leaving for more promising locations. The county seems to have a pretty good handle on aging issues, but is there anything the county can do to keep and/or attract younger folk living and working here?

This is an issue that requires input and planning in many different areas. Door County is fortunate to have many jobs in the manufacturing and service industry. Both of these areas require technology professionals. The Door County Economic Development Corporation has recently implemented the NEXGEN network and this is a good start.

JoAnn Schley (District 11)

Bio: My name is JoAnn Schley, I’m running for the Door County Board in District 11. I’m 67 years old, retired from the Door County Senior Center after being employed there for 26 years. I’m a life long resident of Door County, having grown up on the West side of Sturgeon Bay.My husband Allen and I have been married for 48 years and have two adult children and 4 grandchildren. I am a volunteer at Door County Habitat for Humanity and a member of Bay View Lutheran Church Parish Nurse Committee. Past boards and committees I’ve served on are; Door County Housing Authority Board, Door County Board of Adjustment, Chairperson of the Sevastopol Smart Growth Committee, Sevastopol Planning and Zoning Committee, Door County Ad Hoc Watershed Committee and Neighbor to Neighbor Board.

Why do you want to serve on the Door County Board of Supervisors and what areas of expertise do you bring to the board?

Now that I’m retired I have the time to become more involved. I feel I can represent my friends and neighbors with a common sense approach to county government decisions. I was a supervisor on the Sevastopol Town Board from 1997 – 2007, I served on several committees, was involved with all aspects of town government. I feel this enables me to look at an issue from many sides and make the best decision for the taxpayers I represent.

What is the biggest issue Door County faces at this point in the 21^st century, and how can it be addressed?

Water quality is one of the biggest issues facing our County. I was a member of the Door County Ad Hoc Watershed Committee and know that the county has been very vigilant on gathering information and putting into place  how to continue to protect our water quality. Since a large part of Door County is rock, we will always need to be proactive on making sure that we can continue to protect the quality of our water now and in the future.

Are there any projects on the county’s plate that you would like to see accomplished during your term?

I’d like to see the remodel of the old Highway Shop for a Senior Center/Aging and Disability Resource Center, and Emergency Services building be accomplished. This will be no small task, at a projected cost of 10 million dollars, it will require much thought and careful spending as we use taxpayer’s dollars. My hope would be that the County Board members and others involved will take time to consider the needs and not the “wants” during this process. The County Board needs to consider not only the cost to remodel now, but the dollars it will take to maintain a building of this size in the future.

Please share your thoughts on actions at the state level that either limit local control or put a damper on a county’s ability to conduct its business, for example, revenue caps, slashing of shared revenue, changes to shore land zoning inserted into the 2015-17 budget and the recently passed AB 582, which removes local authority to enact temporary moratoriums on rapid industrial development.

The County does have some limits placed on them from actions that have been taken by the State. While local government provides most essential services, it has limitations on revenue sources. It is limited by a system of state shared revenues, grants and aids, over which they have little or no control, property taxes and limited fees. This leaves local government with virtually no other viable options of replacing revenue, in order to provide local services. The shared revenues program was developed in the early 70’s and it was designed to reduce property taxes. When shared revenues were froze or reduced, as has been the case since the mid 90’s, counties responded by replacing lost revenues with increased property taxes, fees and increased debt. Concern over the increases prompted the legislature to push forward legislation limiting property tax increases. Although the increased cost and increased demand for services continued, counties had to manage with less and less. A large part of Door County’s revenue comes from property taxes, sales tax and intergovernmental revenues. Much of this forces local government to be more accountable for their budgeting practices, but certainly cause limitations on how to provide what the community needs.

The county is facing the double-whammy of an aging population and an exodus of the county’s best and brightest young people leaving for more promising locations. The county seems to have a pretty good handle on aging issues, but is there anything the county can do to keep and/or attract younger folk living and working here?

The Ernst & Young Global Generation Research recently did a massive generational survey where they found, especially among younger adults, that young people are looking for more then money. They want to live and work in a community that offers great parks, safe streets, arts, technology, green industry and an abundance of cultural opportunities. Door County certainly has many of these qualities. But more work will have to be done to providing better technology and becoming an area that not only welcomes tourist, but is welcoming to younger adults and families to stay and work here.

As our older population grows larger we will need, plumbers electricians, caregivers, nurses, doctors and the list goes on. These are jobs that will bring in a much younger population and needed services.  Door County will not be able to continue to be the place older adults want to retire and live if we can’t provide the services they need. I believe that we have a brighter future, more younger families that will enjoy the safety, beauty, and jobs available. A county that will prove that we can be successful and provide a great place to live for all ages.

Megan Lundahl

The county is facing the double-whammy of an aging population and an exodus of the county’s best and brightest young people leaving for more promising locations. The county seems to have a pretty good handle on aging issues, but is there anything the county can do to keep and/or attract younger folk living and working here?

I think we can do better on both counts, serving our elderly and attracting more young professions to the area. The proposition of a new Senior Center and other social programs through various organizations, Ministry and The Women’s Fund to name a couple, are coming alive and its exciting to see the focus shift. Additional support through the county is needed however and exploration of how to best serve the aging population is in process. I would propose the importance of government and not-for-profits really making an effort to share information better and work together to find beneficial solutions. We need to communicate.

In order to attract young professionals and their families to the area there have to be both jobs and housing. The affordable housing shortage in Door County is an issue that needs to be tackled and quickly, possibly through home financing incentive programs and rental incentives. I believe our job market is actually growing to support new residents, where we are lacking is in attracting these young people through education, media and job outreach programs. What young person wouldn’t want to live and work in such a beautiful area surrounded by a thriving arts culture and outdoor activities? I know that’s what drew me back! So again, communication, on a large scale with job fairs and advertising throughout the Midwest in order to attract these young families to our area is paramount. We have some of the best schools in the state too…just need to spread the word! I know I’m up for the task.

Dan Austad (District 8)

Bio: Married to wife Jean, 4 children and 8 grandchildren; former co-owner of Door County ACE Hardware; member of the Door County Board of Supervisors, being chairman the last four years; veteran of the U.S. Army; past president of the board of directors of the Door County Maritime Museum; on the Sturgeon Bay Fire Department for 34 years; spearheaded planning for the Veterans’ Memorial, that is located in front of City Hall; Sturgeon Bay High School graduate in 1959 and Bachelor of Business Administration degree in 1964

Why do you want to serve on the Door County Board of Supervisors and what areas of expertise do you bring to the board?

The reason why I am running for the County Board is I would like to continue giving back to the community where I grew up and have lived my entire life. Being on the County Board a number of years, and having been a co-owner of a local small business, gives me a good understanding and experience on the needs and problems the county faces, with an ability to help solve them.

What is the biggest issue Door County faces at this point in the 21^st century, and how can it be addressed?

The biggest issue Door County faces at this point is sustaining a high level of services for the people of Door County, while keeping the Levy Limits. To do this, the board needs to pay close attention to its budget, in order to keep these services.

Are there any projects on the county’s plate that you would like to see accomplished during your term?

A decision on the location for the EMS, ADRC and Senior Center is what I would like to see accomplished during my term. Reusing the old highway shop, which was built in the 1930’s, would be ideal. It would serve the people of Door County very well and would preserve a piece of the county’s history.

Please share your thoughts on actions at the state level that either limit local control or put a damper on a county’s ability to conduct its business, for example, revenue caps, slashing of shared revenue, changes to shore land zoning inserted into the 2015-17 budget and the recently passed AB 582, which removes local authority to enact temporary moratoriums on rapid industrial development.

Any bill that would limit the ability of the county to conduct business I would oppose. We now send these issues, such as zoning to committees, and they report back to the County Board, so it can make decisions that would best serve the people of Door County.

The county is facing the double-whammy of an aging population and an exodus of the county’s best and brightest young people leaving for more promising locations. The county seems to have a pretty good handle on aging issues, but is there anything the county can do to keep and/or attract younger folk living and working here?

The Door County Economic Development Corporation actively seeks new manufacturing and other businesses to come into our county. Working strongly with DCEDC to attract business would help provide more opportunities for younger people to develop businesses of their own, as well as other jobs to encourage young people to live and work here.

David Dixon-Hayes

Bio: 56, owner for two years of the Reynolds House Bed and Breakfast in historic Sturgeon Bay, WI. Associates Degree in Architecture from Dakota County Technical School; Bachelors of Arts degree in Anthropology from Northland College – Ashland WI; Master of Arts degree in Historic Geography/Archeology; and all but defended my PhD in Geography  (the MA and PhD were from University of Minnesota). US Navy as a chef and medic (4 years). 20 years as an archeologist and regional planner for the National Park Service, stationed in Alaska, Arkansas, New Mexico, Colorado and retiring from Washington DC. As the Regional Planner in Washington I worked very closely (coordinated/facilitated) with the White House on their 5 year management plan as well as twelve other national park units in Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia and the District of Columbia. I oversaw several multi-state transportation projects and energy transmission projects that exceeded $3 billion each as well as supervised and funded archeological projects at sites dating back 10,000 years.

Why do you want to serve on the Door County Board of Supervisors and what areas of expertise do you bring to the board?

I want to serve on the County Board because it is in my blood to serve the public. I have been a civil servant for over twenty years and four years in the US Navy. Over the 20 years in the National Park Service I have come to realize I enjoy listening to people and finding solutions for public issues based on their concerns and expertise. I strongly believe that public issues and projects are best served with many ideas being shared and coming together for a broad and some times complex solution. My civil service experience spans many topics, I was a transportation planner for over 12 years as well as an environmental planner focusing on federal environmental laws such as the Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act; Federal Endangered Species Act and the Environmental Policy Act. I was the Department of Interior Representative on a multi-state, multi-agency rail corridor project involving over 45 agencies and business partners. One of my skills is the ability to listen to various, sometimes conflicting viewpoints, and identify common goals that everyone can agree with and then implementing actions and strategies to reach the identified goal.

What is the biggest issue Door County faces at this point in the 21^st century, and how can it be addressed?

One of the biggest issues for Door County is the salary disparity and dependence on skilled and unskilled labor. Door County needs higher paying jobs to attract and retain the younger workforce. To support these higher paying jobs we need to expand the curriculum and Internship Opportunities at the Tech School. The County could develop an Internship Network between the Tech School and other businesses and employment hubs such as the hospital,  clinics, dental offices, etc hospitality businesses, and agri-businesses.

Are there any projects on the county’s plate that you would like to see accomplished during your term?

I would like to see progress made on better financing for the Community/Senior Center. The County should establish a fund that over time will amass half of the estimated cost for the renovating the Old Highway Shop Building – I do not think the county residents should have a tax increase to pay for the renovations – the county should aggressively apply for grants, solicit philanthropists, and support fund raising events to reduce the tax burden for the renovation.

Please share your thoughts on actions at the state level that either limit local control or put a damper on a county’s ability to conduct its business, for example, revenue caps, slashing of shared revenue, changes to shore land zoning inserted into the 2015-17 budget and the recently passed AB 582, which removes local authority to enact temporary moratoriums on rapid industrial development.

I am not familiar with all the state level controls and changes that directly effect Door County and its ability to conduct business. That being said I have worked with over 20 other states offices on various issues from federal and state highway projects, wetland restoration projects, energy transmission projects, and water quality projects. State involvement and oversight with county projects and issues is only as good as the dialogue between the appropriate offices. If we have a problem or a different perspective from the county then that should be shared openly and directly with the appropriate state office. There should be a cooperative and professional relationship between the State and Door County and that is a responsibility of the County Board.

The county is facing the double-whammy of an aging population and an exodus of the county’s best and brightest young people leaving for more promising locations. The county seems to have a pretty good handle on aging issues, but is there anything the county can do to keep and/or attract younger folk living and working here?

We need to create an economic environment that brings, retains, and develops a healthy economy for the younger generations. That means creating training and entrepenuerial hubs where the IT world can interact with the imagination, risk taking and problem-solving for any new issue or project. If we can do that then our employment rate would be much lower and our work force would be trained and versatile enough to meet the ever changing global, regional, and local demands and employment needs.