Mayor Don Williams, James Scrutton, Doug Wheldon, and Jim Davis were at the Meet and Greet event hosted by Lil Sambos Restaurant recently and I had the opportunity to interview the candidates for city council.
Mayor Don Williams said workforce housing (also known as affordable housing) was the biggest problem the city faced and that the three candidates, with close to 100 years combined building, contracting, and developing experience, could solve the problem. He wants us to vote for these three builders for city council but who are they and why should we?
Jim Davis is running for City Council Ward 1. He is an experienced builder who has a commanding presence. His interview was to the point and he had some great ideas about how to actually solve the problem of affordable housing. Off camera in speaking with Jim Davis I found him to be highly intelligent. Imagine General George S. Patton commanding armies and you get the idea of Jim Davis commanding contractors. He has sat on the council before so some political experience is there.
James Scrutton is running for Ward 2. I enjoyed interviewing this guy. He’s easy to talk to and just an all-around good guy. James Scrutton is a great listener and genuinely cares about his community and neighbors. He has helped feed the homeless in numerous programs and if that wasn’t enough, he tries to talk to all of them and find out what their story is. He said he was ready to help the homeless in Lincoln City learn trades with new programs so they could rejoin society. Scrutton is also a retired contractor and he brings experience in all the different contracting trades.
Doug Wheldon is running for Ward 3. Wheldon went into great detail about what workforce housing is and ways the builders could create the much needed housing for people in Lincoln City. He seemed to know an enormous amount of information on the subject and I was impressed. I learned a thing or two from him. What I really liked about Doug Wheldon was how he presented himself. Something about his body language made me feel comfortable. He was a good listener and really knows everything about construction. He also showed a glimpse of his political strength by how he answered my questions from an average Lincoln City citizen standpoint.
Talking to these three men made me excited for Lincoln City. If they do get elected I have no doubt in my mind that they will tackle the problem of affordable housing and the city will benefit greatly when the dust settles.
