00:00:00:00 - 00:00:40:04
Lindsay Allen
Welcome to the 2024 General election Meet the Candidate Forum. My name is Lindsay Allen and I am joined by Naomi Boutz. We will be your moderators for the 2024 Meet the Candidates series. This year's forum is sponsored by the Hagadone Media Group, Quicksilver Studios, and the Joint Public Policy Committee of the Coeur d'Alene regional, Hayden, Post Falls, and Rathdrum Chambers of Commerce in partnership with the Coeur d'Alene and Post Falls Press.

00:00:40:06 - 00:01:05:17
Lindsay Allen
This forum is intended to allow you, the voter, to hear from the candidates representing various Idaho state legislative …

00:00:00:00 - 00:00:40:04
Lindsay Allen
Welcome to the 2024 General election Meet the Candidate Forum. My name is Lindsay Allen and I am joined by Naomi Boutz. We will be your moderators for the 2024 Meet the Candidates series. This year's forum is sponsored by the Hagadone Media Group, Quicksilver Studios, and the Joint Public Policy Committee of the Coeur d'Alene regional, Hayden, Post Falls, and Rathdrum Chambers of Commerce in partnership with the Coeur d'Alene and Post Falls Press.

00:00:40:06 - 00:01:05:17
Lindsay Allen
This forum is intended to allow you, the voter, to hear from the candidates representing various Idaho state legislative and Kootenai County positions who will share their vision and policies to help inform your vote. Candidates will be given one minute to introduce themselves, then asked three questions with two minutes to respond to each question. Candidates will be allowed one minute for their closing statements.

00:01:05:18 - 00:01:49:01
Lindsay Allen
These forums provide a unique opportunity to connect with the candidate who seek to serve our community. By meeting our candidates one on one in a more casual environment, we aim to better inform Kootenai County voters about each candidate's point of view.

00:01:49:03 - 00:02:16:05
Naomi Boutz
Next up, we have Kootenai County Commissioner seat three, and we're going to start with incumbent Leslie Duncan. Leslie, please give us an introduction.

Leslie Duncan
Sure. Thank you for having me here. I've been commissioner since 2019, and I've really enjoyed working for the public. I intend to do the same thing. Should I be reelected and continue on?

00:02:16:07 - 00:02:48:18
Leslie Duncan
I'm definitely high on private property rights. I also want to make sure that people are heard. So as a chairman, I have welcomed public comment and people to come and engage their commissioners. I am the, current chair for the Hayden regional sewer board and for the basin Commission as well. So I'm just, excited to be here and, happy to answer your questions.

00:02:48:20 - 00:03:14:14
Naomi Boutz
Thank you. So, first question, as the incumbent. What have been your most significant achievements in improving the quality of life in Kootenai County? We have two minutes.

Leslie Duncan
Thank you. I think one of the big things is bringing civility back to local government. There is just a lot of angst in the public right now, and I pride myself on, listening to the public make making sure that everyone is heard.

00:03:14:20 - 00:03:48:05
Leslie Duncan
And civility is a huge, huge, important part of what I do. I want to listen to everybody. I'm here to serve everyone. And that's kind of what I like to do. The other things would be, preparing for Kootenai County's, the government's infrastructure. So we're building three new courtrooms. I want to make sure that our Justice Center is top notch and to get everybody through that, whether it's a civil matter or criminal matter, get them adjudicated as soon as possible.

00:03:48:07 - 00:04:14:06
Naomi Boutz
Thank you. Next question. What sets you apart from your opponent, and why should voters trust you to continue representing them as county commissioner?

Leslie Duncan
Right. Good question. So obviously, what sets me apart is I've been involved in my community. I've been doing the job for almost six years now. I do understand county government. I was in, government, both state and local, when I was in law enforcement.

00:04:14:08 - 00:04:38:11
Leslie Duncan
And so I understand how it operates. I was also a small business owner for about 14 years, so I understand that piece of it as well. You want to be able to, get the best bang for the buck. So be very, financially conservative, which is how my background in, small business helps. And then, of course, understanding that law governs almost all of what, county government does.

00:04:38:16 - 00:05:03:23
Leslie Duncan
So it's very important to have that government background to understand what you can and can't do. A lot of promises are made, especially on the commissioner level. And frankly, a lot of it can't be done because it's against state law. So I think that's very important to have that background.

Naomi Boutz
Okay. Thank you. What will you do to ensure continued transparency and community engagement in county decisions?

00:05:04:01 - 00:05:26:16
Leslie Duncan
So a couple things that we have done is, put backup documentation on the website. So every Tuesday at 2:00, we have a business meeting, and people are able to go without making a public records request right to the website and see the contracts were approving, see the MOUs, the documents, that we're talking about at the 2:00 meeting.

00:05:26:18 - 00:05:51:23
Leslie Duncan
We're also doing that for the 10 a.m. meeting. Sometimes there's not a lot of backup documentation, but that really helps the public with the transparency, welcoming them and, you know, hosting town halls, those are kinds of things that, you know, I'm involved in doing to engage the public and, really hear from people.

00:05:52:01 - 00:06:23:22
Naomi Boutz
Thank you. Now, you going to make your closing statement? You have one minute.

Leslie Duncan
All right. Again, I've just really enjoyed my time serving citizens. I've gotten to know many, many people in the community. I really, think it's important that you have somebody who's going to stand in the gap, who's going to stand up for, not just personal property rights, but all rights for our citizens and someone who's been proven to not only do that, but run efficient and, transparent and financial responsible government.

00:06:24:00 - 00:06:41:19
Leslie Duncan
So I would ask for your vote on November 5th.

00:07:21:10 - 00:07:49:20
Naomi Boutz
Okay. We're going to continue on with Kootenai County Commissioners seat three. And next we have Roger Rowland. Roger, please take a minute to introduce yourself.

Roger Rowland
Thank you very much. Roger Roland. Been in the county 32 years. I've a master's degree in public policy and administration. I'm a combat veteran. I spent four years in federal law enforcement.

00:07:49:22 - 00:08:22:15
Roger Rowland
Spent 30 years in the private sector across, a variety of industries and senior leadership roles. I, ran a successful management consulting firm for ten years. And, I think this is a, a really special place. And I, look forward to continuing to live here and enjoy this special place.

Naomi Boutz
Thank you. What key changes would you bring to the role of Kootenai County Commissioner, and how will they benefit the county? You have two minutes.

00:08:22:17 - 00:08:55:04
Roger Rowland
Well, I think the first thing I would try to bring is, trust. You know, I think trust is extremely important. You have to earn it. And when I say trust, I say bring trust to not only the board of county commissioners, but to the other elected officials in the various municipalities. To the other elected officials of Kootenai County, to the tribe and certainly to the citizens of, residents of Kootenai County.

00:08:55:05 - 00:09:18:22
Roger Rowland
So, so trust is one thing that I think is very important. And I would try to bring to the, the board of County commissioners. Without trust, it's very hard to introduce new ideas and new concepts. And I think we very much need some new ideas and some new concepts. The second thing I would bring is, a proactive perspective on growth.

00:09:19:00 - 00:09:39:09
Roger Rowland
We're not going to stop growth in the county. It's a very special place. It's been discovered people will continue to come here short of a catastrophic event, polluting or overusing our aquifer, damaging our drinking water that will stop growth. A major economic event will also stop growth. But short of that, we're going to continue to grow.

00:09:39:11 - 00:10:03:09
Roger Rowland
And I would like to, do whatever I can to manage that growth proactively. And to do that, we need to do some things differently. And I think I have a background and a perspective that would facilitate that. Thirdly, I would like to pay very much attention to the aquifer and protecting the aquifer, our source of drinking water.

00:10:03:11 - 00:10:29:21
Roger Rowland
And it certainly relates to preserving the prairie, our agriculture. And finally, I would say efficiency and effectiveness in government, making sure what we do in government, county government is providing the best service at the best cost to the residents of Kootenai County.

Naomi Boutz
Thank you. What distinguishes your approach to county leadership from your opponents?

00:10:29:23 - 00:10:59:00
Roger Rowland
I think it's very much a matter of perspective. To me, this is new. I'm doing it because I'm a concerned citizen. I don't view it as a job. I view it as public service. My background, my experience is one of problem solving in large, complex organizations. So I tend to look at things from a program or project management perspective. By that, I mean, when I see a situation or a problem, my first order of business is to spend the time to understand that problem.

00:10:59:02 - 00:11:28:04
Roger Rowland
To break it down into actionable parts, to set up a project baseline, schedule budget deliverables, and manage it as a program. That's the way you make progress. I think I view openness and no hidden agenda as extremely important in the role. I think we need to be above board. Put our put our feelings or our politics or personal feelings aside and deal with the issues facing the county.

00:11:28:04 - 00:11:58:18
Roger Rowland
And we have a number of them. We have we have growth, we have traffic, we have aquifer. We have the prairie. We have, overcrowding and schools. Our hospitals are under stress. We have a lot of things going on in the county that all require a problem solving, proactive approach. I think, when you've been in a role for a while, you tend to find yourself, sustaining operations, doing what you've been doing in the past.

00:11:58:20 - 00:12:19:22
Roger Rowland
And I think we need some new, new look, some new energy to, to bring to the table here. And, I think I have a good background and a perspective to do that. So that's why I'm encouraged to, to put myself out there and to, see if there's other folks in the county that feel like we're due for a little course correction.

00:12:20:00 - 00:12:43:03
Naomi Boutz
And thank you. Last question. What steps will you take to ensure transparency and community engagement in county decisions?

Roger Rowland
Well, first of all, you have to, bring the right constituents together. Let's take growth as an example. When when I think of growth and I think of managing infrastructure, you know, I think of the people who play a key role in that.

00:12:43:03 - 00:13:09:05
Roger Rowland
And maybe it's a little different than some people would think about. But I think of Lakes Highway District, I think of North Idaho College. I think of the school board and system. I think of the utilities, electricity, Avista. I think of our drinking water, the people that are impacted by the growth on the prairie. So the first thing I would want to do is bring that set of constituents together to discuss, to collaborate, to find new ideas.

00:13:09:07 - 00:13:33:04
Roger Rowland
You know, I would really want to engage with those individuals that are out there today trying to find solutions to our housing challenges. Individuals, organizations are working some innovative systems, solutions today. We need to engage them and support them. And again, I will say no hidden agenda. You know, our, our our environment here has become highly politicized.

00:13:33:05 - 00:14:01:20
Roger Rowland
You know, there's a lot of Partizan politics in play. There's a lot of anger, there's a lot of fear. And I think we need to put that aside. We need to separate Partizan and politics issues of national importance from managing the county. We have a full plate managing the county. So let's focus on that. And I think if I can bring that kind of of view and behavior to to the board of county commissioners, it will be a step in the right direction.

00:14:01:20 - 00:14:23:06
Roger Rowland
So, you know, I want to have an open dialog with the right constituents, the citizens, the residents of Kootenai County. Let's talk about the issues. Let's find solutions. Let's not be victims to the system, the symptoms that affect us all. If we don't believe we can't do anything different other than maintain what we have. We're going to get what we're going to get.

00:14:23:06 - 00:14:45:20
Roger Rowland
And we may not like it at the end of the day. Let's manage our growth proactively. Let's keep this place special.

Naomi Boutz
Thank you. Now you have one minute to give your closing statement.

Roger Rowland
So, why am I doing this? People deserve a choice. And candidates. You know, our system doesn't work. Well, if there's only one candidate we need.

00:14:45:20 - 00:15:09:09
Roger Rowland
We need a choice. People have to take that choice. But I want to offer a choice of another candidate for district three county commissioner. My background, my military, my law enforcement, my education, my professional experience. I think, prepares me well, from a experiential point of view and a perspective point of view to address the issues of the county.

00:15:09:11 - 00:15:30:19
Roger Rowland
My my goal is, like a lot of the residents, I want to keep this place special. When I found it 32 years ago, I thought I'd found a very special place. I think it still is a very special place, and in four years from now, I want it to be even better than it is today. I don't want to be a victim of not doing, not taking the right actions to make our county keep our county special.

00:15:30:21 - 00:15:34:02
Roger Rowland
Thank you very much.

00:15:34:04 - 00:15:57:06
Naomi Boutz
On behalf of the Joint Public Policy Committees representing the Coeur d'Alene regional, Hayden, Post falls and Rathdrum Chambers of Commerce in partnership with the Hagadone Media Group and Coeur d'Alene and Post Falls Press. Lindsay and I thank all candidates for participating. I would also like to thank the production team members at the Quicksilver Studios, the Hagadone Media Group, and the Coeur d'Alene Press.

00:15:57:07 - 00:16:18:11
Naomi Boutz
And of course, thank you to those who have taken the time to learn more about each of the candidates featured in this year's Meet the Candidates series. This series has made it possible to hear from 23 Kootenai County local race candidates. We sincerely thank candidates who took the time to discuss what is important to voters in Kootenai County.

00:16:18:12 - 00:16:54:06
Naomi Boutz
We hope this townhall forum has helped inform those still uncertain about whom they will cast a final ballot for in the coming weeks. Please remember to vote. It's one of the most significant rights and responsibilities as Americans. The fundamental message this year is cast informed votes. Thank you.