ELECTION: Three seats up for the taking in Clarksville

Clark County

Discussion

October 30, 2007

Two GOPs, two Dems eye at-large seats; Libertarian seeks District 2 seat

By DAVID MANN The News and Tribune Tue Oct 30, 2007, 01:08 PM EDT

Heading into Election Day — which is a week from today — the Democrats are in charge in Clarksville. However, three council seats are facing challenges from two Republicans and one Libertarian.

A “battle royale” is taking place for the council’s two at-large seats. Councilman Greg Isgrigg — the only incumbent in the four-way at-large race — says he wants to hang on to his job because he feels like he’s made a fair amount of progress on a town graphical information system and on a plan to fix stormwater drainage problems.

Those will be among his priorities heading into the next term, assuming he retains the office. He’d also like to work on fixing the odor problem in neighborhoods around the town’s sewage-treatment plant.

He’s being challenged by Republicans Jodi Leonard and Keith Sellmer and Democrat Vicki Appleby.

Leonard is running on a platform of accountability and cleaning up corruption. She calls the current council “professional politicians.” She believes residents should be afforded the opportunity to speak at town council meetings and she would like council members to be reachable via e-mail.

She also wants to streamline the budget process to ensure that departments aren’t operating with several different spending plans. If elected, she said, “I’m willing to work with the current council.”

Lack of public participation is one of Sellmer’s primary concerns as well. Asked about the current council, he said: “Overall they’ve done a good job — the problem is a lack of public input and overspending.”

A primary example of the overspending is the purchase of two trucks that the town bought earlier this year without going to bid, he said. Sellmer also wants to see to it that the council stops giving ordinances two readings in the same night. If the council wants to pass an ordinance, they should give it one reading, allow a few weeks for public response, then pass the second reading, he said.

Isgrigg admits that the council gets its fair share of criticism but says, “I believe we’re doing a good job.” There is room for improvement, he admits. He would like upgrades to the town’s computer system and to make more information available online.

The other person in this race is business owner Vicki Appleby, who won the party nod in last May’s primary election. Despite numerous attempts, Appleby could not be reached for this story and she did not submit a questionnaire sent out by The Evening News and The Tribune.

District 2

Incumbent Councilman Gene Richert is facing a challenge from Libertarian Greg Hertzsch in the town’s second district. Hertzsch says he is running because he believes it’s time for a gut check on the town’s finances.

“They don’t keep track of their money very well,” he said, citing the same truck purchases as Sellmer. “I’m pretty much a hawk when it comes to spending.”

Hertzsch also disagreed with a vote to bring the town’s curbside recycling program back. The council canceled the program briefly, and then after public outcry brought it back. He said he would have left it canceled. Additionally, he said, he will oppose any new attempts at creating a townwide smoking ban.

His opponent did not return numerous phone calls for this story, nor did he fill out a questionnaire.