Washington Are you a King County voter?

[flyred]

This email is the first I heard that there is an election on March 16th-interesting that the notice DIDN'T come of KC elections office. I know nothing about the other candidate or if there even is another candidate. But if the Bunny Huggers have a guy in the race we should be watching our wallets and our trails.

Dear Joe,

King Conservation District Election

Tuesday, March 16

Learn more about endorsed candidate, Max Prinsen, & voting information.

In 7 days King County will hold an election that will determine how millions of natural resource dollars are spent, yet many voters have never even heard of it.

On March 16, voters will elect a new member to the King Conservation District, and environmentalists say the choice is clear - elect Max Prinsen.

The King Conservation District (KCD) is a natural resource agency authored by Washington State. KCD programs range from assisting farmers with creating conservation plans to investing in environmental protection and habitat restoration programs.

King County Conservation Voters endorsed Max Prinsen because of his strong background in habitat and water conservation. Prinsen is the President of Save Habitat and Diversity of Wetland (SHADOW), an organization he founded to preserve critical areas in SE King County.

Unlike other King County elections, the KCD election process requires that voters show up in person at polling locations - there is no absentee or mail in ballots. Last year only 2,700 people voted in this election. Your vote always counts, but when only a few thousand people might cast a ballot, your vote for a pro-environmental candidate is critical.

A list of all the polling locations and hours are below. Please take a minute right now to plan where and when you can vote next Tuesday, March 16. See you at the polling booths!

Jesseca Brand

King County Conservation Voters

Polling Locations:

Auburn King County Library

1102 Auburn Way South, Auburn

Poll hours 10:30am – 8:00pm

Bellevue King County Library

1111 110th Avenue NE, Bellevue

Poll hours 10:30am – 8:00pm

Carnation King County Library

4804 Tolt Avenue, Carnation

Poll hours 10:30am – 8:00pm

Des Moines King County Library

21260 11th Avenue South, Des Moines

Poll hours 10:30am – 8:00pm

Downtown Seattle Public Library

1000 Fourth Avenue, Seattle

Poll hours 10:30am – 7:30pm

Shoreline King County Library

345 NE 175th , Shoreline

Poll hours 10:30am – 8pm

Vashon King County Library

17210 Vashon Highway SW, Vashon Island

Poll hours 10:30 am – 8:00pm

[flyred]

http://www.kingcd.org/elect/new_ele_2010-candidates.htm

Meet the Candidates

Mary Embleton, Seattle

Mary Embleton has worked for 30 years in the fields of natural resource economics and the environment. Born in Seattle and raised in Montana, Mary brings an understanding of both urban...

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Mara Heiman, Auburn

Compared with the other candidates, I have the most extensive background in water resource issues. These will be crucial as the Puget Sound region struggles with both flooding threats and...

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Teri Herrera, Redmond

My 18 years of experience as a Realtor® has given me a broad base of knowledge in all aspects of land use and land use issues. Sensitive areas, setbacks, wetlands and other land use restrictions...

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Kirk Prindle, Seattle

I am running for King Conservation District Board of Supervisors because I believe the District would be better served by having more technical expertise and pertinent experience-based knowledge...

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Max Prinsen, Renton

I am running for the board position of King Conservation District, because I am a conservationist that leads by example represents the Mission and Vision of the Conservation District...

Read More

http://www.kingcd.org/elect/new_ele_2010-candidates-heiman.htm

Meet the Candidates

Mara Heiman, Auburn

Endorsed by:

King County Council Reagan Dunn

King County Council Kathy Lambert

Algona Mayor Dave Hill

Auburn Mayor Pete Lewis

All Auburn Councilmembers:

Deputy Mayor Sue Singer,

Nancy Backus, Virginia Haugen,

Lynn Norman, John Partridge,

Bill Peloza & Rich Wagner

Qualifications/Experience

20+ years experience working with government agencies on water resources

10+ years Officer in a Group “A” water district

40+ years Farmer/Landowner in the Lower Green River Valley

Long term participant in King County Agriculture Commission meetings

Initiated the Lower Green River flooding sub-committee (Ag Commission)

Former John L Scott Agent

Compared with the other candidates, I have the most extensive background in water resource issues. These will be crucial as the Puget Sound region struggles with both flooding threats and future water shortages, as well as water quality and fish habitat.

I also have demonstrated an ability to work cooperatively with multiple stakeholders. I will make better relationships with our cities a priority, and this starts with dialogue on how we can better serve their needs. King County WRIAs, agriculture and forestry are challenged in our urban environment, especially with current economics and budgets. Preserving our working lands leads to quality-of-life benefits for all our residents. A vital agriculture embraces food, fiber, equine and other areas. We must continue conservation efforts with farms, and expand our ability to encourage small forests. I specifically support farmer markets which help bring urban and rural residents together.

I am a lifetime resident of the Auburn-Kent Valley, where we’ve seen the cities develop around us. While this transition promoted the goal of economic vitality, it also impacted our natural resource goal - especially for water quality, aquatic areas and agriculture. Large population increases are still projected for King County, and I want to use my experience to support both these goals.

I will respect property rights. The KCD mission and culture is to work cooperatively with property owners, whether it be private farms and forests, city/county parks, or urban gardens. This leverages contributions from the private and public sectors, to maximize on-the-ground results. I will strive for continuous KCD efficiencies, so that more conservation projects can be accomplished without increasing your assessment dollars.

I am committed to using my knowledge/experience cooperatively with all stakeholders, to achieve positive and timely results. The following are special areas of my interests and expertise.

Fish & Habitat Restoration

WRIA Ecosystem Restoration, Various Environmental regulations, Mill Creek Aquatic Resource Plan

Agriculture

Farmland Preservation Program, Agriculture Production Districts, K.C. Agriculture Commission

Flooding/Water Quality

Clean Water Act/NPDES, King County Flood Hazard Mgmt Plan, King County FEMA Floodplain Mgmt, King County Surface Water Design Manual, King County Water Quality Mgmt Plans, King County Shoreline Mgmt Plan, Mill Creek Flood Control Plan

??

[tod701]

Conservation District elections are for some reason traditionally kept nearly secret.

[Cycle_Path]

ill be on the lookout

[Project Panther]

Conservation District elections are for some reason traditionally kept nearly secret.

I wonder why

[chris_johnson]

One of the candidates, Kirk Prindle, is a professional conservationist and rides a dirt bike that he took from Seattle, down through Mexico and into Central America. He likes everyone to enjoy the outdoors, not just the "bunny huggers".

We don't have to worry too much about some "bunny huggers" getting elected anyway because the King Conservation District does not set regulations and can't enforce anything. The KCD just provides free education and assistance to land owners and promotes conservation. If you can come up with a good project, like rural trail improvement, the KCD might fund it, but they aren't the ones making nasty rules, dropping the hammer and basically making life hard for everybody.

Since the KCD does spend our money (from part of our property taxes) it needs someone who can make sure the projects that get funded are not total wastes of money like some of the past projects. Kirk is definitely a qualified conservationist and since he owns a dirt bike he'll be more likely to look out for everyone, not just the tree huggers. Kirk has done conservation work for city and state government and has represented businesses, so he understands everyone's take on things and isn't on some moral crusade.

It sucks they made it hard for us to vote, but I'll be downtown anyway, so I'm voting for Kirk since he's the only qualified one with a dirt bike.

[flyred]

Thanks Chris.

I got that election notice right before I was headed out the door for a 4 day trip to Mexico.

I appreciate you doing the leg work and finding a good candidate.

Any time I see a Bunny Hugging group push their candidate, even for a little known county organization, Red Flags go up with me.

Whether it's used as a stepping stone or as a way to consolidate power for a group that does not approve of ORV's, we need to stay vigilant and vote.