The five candidates running for Carroll City Council and the two mayoral candidates participated in a Carroll Chamber of Commerce and Carroll Area Development Corporation (CADC) candidate forum on Wednesday night. Moderator, St. Anthony Foundation Director, Trish Roberts, says there were so many questions submitted by residents prior to the forum that it could have been extended by several hours, but they were still able to get to many key topics. At one point, the candidates were asked about successful public/private collaborations. Mayoral candidate, Mark Beardmore, says these are important, and becoming more so over time.
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The other mayoral candidate, Jerry Fleshner, says the library project was one of the biggest public/private endeavors taken since he began serving on the council. He adds the city needs to ensure they are utilizing all resources, including grants and other dollars made available to public entities. Fleshner also mentions the Merchants Park project along with Kellan’s Kingdom all-inclusive playground and the Miracle Field. At-large council candidate, JJ Schreck, says these are phenomenal examples of partnerships, but in her vision for the future, the city needs to live up to their side of these bargains.
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Candidate for council Ward One, Jay Norgaard, says public and private collaborations are great for many different types of projects and initiatives, but government involvement can be a slippery slope for some businesses.
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The other Ward One candidate, Tom Bordenaro says we need to keep things more local. There is a shop local policy, but it should be carried on through the projects and jobs that need to be done around the community. We need to hire local businesses to keep those dollars here in Carroll, Bordenaro says. Incumbent for Ward Three, Clay Haley has a little different view on the question because of that eight years of service.
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His opponent in Ward Three, Kyle Bauer, says city leaders need to ask the people of Carroll their opinions.
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Carroll Broadcasting will bring you more responses from candidates at Wednesday’s forum in upcoming newscasts on topics such as the formation of a candidate group, workforce and housing shortages, local amenities, business relationships and more. A link to the forum can be found with this story on our website.
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Full audio from the Carroll City Candidate Forum:
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Video of forum: