Election 2019: City Council candidate Rebecca Norton

Rebecca Norton says she’d like to change the “tone” of Whitefish city government to ensure it’s welcoming to everyone.

“I want to make sure everyone is heard,” Norton said. “It feels like the tone has shifted and like we’re not deeply listening to each other like we used to.”

Norton moved to Whitefish in 1996. She owns Handworks clinic and is certified hand therapist and registered occupational therapist, and is a certified massage therapist. She has served in several leadership roles in associations related to her profession.

Norton has served on the city Planning Board and several city committees including ADA implementation committee, board of adjustments, tree committee, ethics committee, local government review commission and the Wisconsin corridor plan committee.

Having served on those committees and spent many hours observing City Council meetings, Norton says she’d like to increase inclusion in the process.

“I want to make sure that people are being invited to the public process and feel they are part of that process,” she said.

An area she’d like the city to resolve is dealing with failing septic tanks around Whitefish Lake. She notes that the city has done good work to preserve its drinking water source in Haskill Basin and more work needs to be done with the lake, and in addition protection of the Whitefish River.

In addition, she’d like to see representatives of the city’s various committees attending Council meetings to provide an update on their work.

Affordable housing

Norton has faith in the city’s affordable housing plan and says she’s encouraged that the plan calls for regular interviews and changes if necessary.

“Tremendous progress has been made,” she said. “It’s a good first step. We’re on track, but I don’t know if it will be enough.”

She points to positives in developments including smaller housing units designed for younger people and seniors as a positive. She’d also like to see more workforce housing projects created by employers in the community.

“We’re on track now,” she said. “I don’t know if it’s going to be enough, but it’s so much better than it was the 14 years before.”

Growth

Norton worries about the impact of the city’s growth on police and fire, as well as transportation.

She points out that some projects have already helped such as the remodel of the city’s downtown to help with safety concerns. She’d also like to see the city continue to work with the state Department of Transportation to improve Wisconsin Avenue.

Public process

Norton says she’d like to see more people get involved with city government, and specifically she’d wants to look into making Planning Board packets available sooner prior to the board’s monthly meetings to give the public more time to review documents.

“We do a great job with the public process, but we can always improve,” she said.

She’s interested in identifying neighborhoods around the city where a volunteer would look to keep track of what’s going on in the city related to their neighborhood and also organize neighbors to prepare for emergencies.

“Part of the problem is that people get involved so late and they feel left behind,” she said. “I’d like to improve that.”

In addition, she says she would like to see Council adopt an updated ethics policy because such a policy keeps the public process “clean and shiny.”

Water and sewer rates

Norton says she understands people’s frustration with increasing water and sewer rates, but not increasing rates on a consistent basis in the past has led to forced increases now.

She notes that upgrading the city’s wastewater treatment plant to meet state requirements is the right thing to do to protect the Whitefish River and protecting the city’s drinking water source in Haskill Basin through a conservation easement was also the correct thing to do.

“I don’t know how to make it less expensive, but it is being done through the public process,” she said. “People in places of stewardship are doing the right thing. Infrastructure is expensive, and we have to leverage grants and bonds, but it’s a realistic necessity.”

Whitefish is conducting a mail-ballot election for the city election. Ballots will be mailed on Oct. 16 and must be returned to the Flathead County Election Department office by 8 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 5, signed by the name of the voter on the envelope.

Five candidates are seeking three open City Council positions.