KJAM completes the trio of Madison City Commission candidate interviews with this chat with incumbent Dick Ericsson:
Alas, I'm compelled to agree for now with the assessment of the Madville Times city commission poll: on the basis of these three brief interviews, Ericsson and fellow incumbent Scott Delzer come across as more knowledgeable and prepared to do the job than challenger Roger Husman. That doesn't mean Roger Husman can't do the job; it just means that, if we approach these videos like job interviews, Ericsson and Delzer sell themselves better.
Ericsson also gets bonus points for rocking the sweater vest.
On issues, Ericsson says you can't blame the city for high electric rates. He also holds out hope that high water on the river will lead to more cheap hydro power and slower rate increases.
He says Madison is lucky to have a second-penny sales tax dedicated to infrastructure, sicne we have aging water mains and sewer lines and a lot of streets to fix. On revenue sources, he says we're working on various industrial development possibilities. He doesn't say what; just have faith that the men behind the curtain are working all sorts of magic.
And for those who would dare point out that Madison's current economic development efforts have led to zero sales tax revenue growth, loss of hundreds of jobs, and 1% population decline, Ericsson says that without the city's economic development efforts, we'd be going backwards a lot faster than we are. Indeed, we all do prefer a slow death....
Next up: Madison Central School Board candidate videos! Jennie Thompson's is already up; the other four (including yours truly!) are soon to come! Stay tuned!