Mayoral candidates visit
Logan city mayoral candidates arrived on Wednesday at the Eccles Conference Center to answer questions from USU students.
The debate was sponsored by Pi Sigma Alpha – the political science honor society – USU College Democrats, College Republicans and the Government Relations Council. Questions were asked from a panel made of Student Advocate Vice President Daryn Frischknecht, Utah Public Radio news coordinator Matt Jensen and USU political science professor Damon Cann.
Questions ranged from topics about the new water treatment center, parking, air quality, the downtown economy and traffic congestion. The candidates were given 90 seconds on their first answer and 30 seconds for a rebuttal answer.
“People say, ‘Gee, a third term, why?'” said Logan mayor Randy Watts. “Accountability. The bottom line is I have a list of things that I’ve been ingrained into that I want to see done.”
Watts has served as mayor for eight years. Previously, he owned and operated J.R. Construction for 14 years, was vice-president of Sunshine Terrace Board of Directors and was a member of the USU Board of Trustees.
“If it’s (not) broken, why change it?” Watts said.
County councilman and mayoral candidate Craig Petersen doesn’t think the city is broken. He wants to make it more efficient.
“It’s not broken,” Petersen said. “It’s whether we’re getting the maximum number of miles out of our vehicles.”
Petersen has been on the city council for 18 years and recently retired as a professor at USU. He served as the president’s chief of staff and vice-provost.
When asked what the most pressing issue facing Logan was, they both answered with the new water treatment facility. The Environmental Protection Agency has required the city to change its water system – a project estimated to cost $111 million.
“I’m running for third term because I’m in the throat of this discussion with senators and the governor,” Watts said. “We might get $70 million from state. This is the biggest single impact that this valley will see as far as dollars and it will affect every resident. It will be costly no matter how we do it.”
Petersen agreed the treatment facility is the number one issue facing the city and the valley.
“The key is that we make sure we do it right,” Petersen said. “Use the right technology and finance it right.”
Watts said the facility will be costly to maintain after it is built.
A question was asked about concerns with traffic congestion. The candidates disagreed on how to fix the issue.
“The problem with traffic congestion is we’re too little, too late,” Petersen said. “There are things that should have been done 10 years ago.”
Petersen mentioned changing busy roads around Main Street to one way streets. But he said the problem with Main Street is that it’s not under the city’s control – it’s under the state’s.
“Let’s just talk about the bigger picture,” Watts said. “The city of Logan is still small, 50,000. It’s money, everything is dollars. Sure we want to do more, but it’s only when the dollars can r
oll in.”
He suggested maybe when the population doubles, the city could afford to accomplish more expensive traffic projects.
The candidates were also asked about parking for students.
“Those problems are really quite serious in some areas and less so in other areas,” Petersen said. “The other problem is that we have severe winters in Cache County. I don’t know if there’s a great solution to that.”
He said parking terraces are too expensive and citizens need to rely more on mass transit.
Watts echoed the need for residents to utilize alternative transportation.
“We become more of walkable community, biking community,” Watts said. “If you want to make it to class on time, probably better to walk.”
The candidates also suggested mass transit when asked about air quality concerns in the winter. Watts said it was about making choices during travel.
“I had a KSL individual come up to interview me during a red inversion,” Watts said. “He said, ‘How am I going to fix it?’ and I said, ‘How did you get here?’ He said ‘I brought the van and the others were late, we had two vehicles.’ I said, ‘You’re the problem.’ We need to change habits. We have to change what the standard is. We’ve got to get up earlier, get the bus. Mentally, think about what you’re doing.”
Peterson explained his role in the Cache Valley air quality dilemma. He said he’s been one of the most involved people since the beginning. He was part of the initiative that passed the emissions testing ordinance.
“The difficulty in air quality is that it’s determined by climatic issues,” Petersen said.
When asked about the relationship between USU and the city, both answered with extreme gratitude toward the university.
“We owe a debt of gratitude to the university, the quality of life,” Watts said. “What would Logan be? A wonderful city. Look at the depth of what the university does. Maybe we’d be a Preston. Preston is fine. Look at the depth.”
Petersen explained his previous role in the university and his experience.
“I know how the university works, I know what its issues are. I know who the people are,” Petersen said. “I know what I think needs to happen in the future.”
He said he thinks USU needs to be more involved in the downtown area.
“We have a downtown area, it’s not vital,” Petersen said. “One of the reasons is it’s not frequented by students. The Downtown Alliance needs student representation. The Downtown Alliance needs to be reflective of what students want.”
The panel ended the debate by asking what the candidates’ favorite thing was about Logan. Both echoed the love they have for the community.
“There can’t be a single favorite thing,” Petersen said. “Fundamentally, it has to be the people.”
Petersen said he enjoys interactions with students. He talked about how he frequently sees students in jobs around Logan.
“It’s not just in restaurants, it’s in all stores in Logan,” Petersen said. “Competence, desire to serve; I like the interactions. People are friendly and alive and vibrant. I enjoy the interaction with people.”
Watts agreed, but commented on the geography and outdoors of the valley.
“The beauty is all around us,” Watts said. “If you need quiet time, you can be there in five minutes. We’re the safest metropolitan area in the country. It’s the people, the community.”
He said the people in the valley need to be applauded.
“We could make money somewhere else, but the quality of life is why people stay here,” Watts said.
Early voting goes through Friday Nov. 1 and Election Day is Nov. 5. The closest polling location to USU is the Lundstrom Student Center. For more information on polling locations, visit loganutah.org.
Twitter: @daniellekmanley
Listen to the debate on UPR’s website.