Sedona.biz interviews candidates for open council seat:  Michael Ward

By Tommy Acosta, Associate Editor

SEDONA, AZ (June 27, 2009) - Because there will be no election for the currently-vacant council seat left open by former Sedona City Council member Marc Sterling, Sedona.biz has invited the four council applicants to express their position, qualification and vision for Sedona.

Applicants Jerry Frye, Mark DiNunzio, Mike Ward and Gregg Ensminger have all been provided with the same questions and their responses will be printed, un-edited, regardless of length, on Sedona.biz.

Understanding the public will not get a chance to become familiar with the candidates and their positions due to the council holding a one-day interview 9 a.m. July 2 in the Vultee Room at City Hall, we hope to give the public a glimpse of the candidates so readers can better understand the motivation behind the council’s final choice for Sterling’s replacement.

Our first interview was with applicant Gregg Ensminger.

Our next interview is with Mike Ward, who with his wife Linda, moved from the western suburbs of Chicago to the Sedona area in June 2002, settling in the Chapel area in September 2003.

The following are the questions and his responses:

He said like many, he was attracted by the beauty of the area.

“We were attracted to the unique natural beauty of Sedona, access to the national forest, the soul-soothing effect of the red rocks, the small town feeling, dark skies, and the variety of opportunities to give back through volunteering,” he said. “Coming from a large metropolitan area (Chicago), we were attracted to a less hectic pace of life and low traffic congestion.

The following is the text of our interview with Mr. Ward.

Sedona.biz: Why do you want to serve on the council?

Mr. Ward: “Why would anyone want to serve on Sedona’s City Council?” I’ve asked myself that question on numerous occasions. After completing four years of leadership service with the strictly non-political volunteer service organization, Friends of the Forest, I became interested in the politics of city service.

I volunteered in the fall of 2008 to serve on Sedona’s Planning and Zoning Commission but was unsuccessful. I have explored the formation of a Political Action Committee (PAC) to find and support civically minded residents to run for the city council. I was also interested in creating a process for finding a consensus in the community on the issues that either confront Sedona or divide us.

When speaking with a member of the City Council about my interest in these issues, he suggested that instead I should consider running for City Council. I responded that I was not at all interested. His reply to me, “If not you, then who?” This got me thinking seriously about serving the community on City Council. I concluded that serving on the City Council appealed to my sense of serving and that I am willing to invest the time to responsibly serve on the City Council.

Shortly thereafter, I began planning my campaign for the April 2010 election.

I believe that personal opinions on public matters are less important than studied positions on issues supported by factual information.

My position statements on the Sedona Airport control tower, the National Scenic Area designation, an alternate route, and the general issue of affordable housing, that have been published in Sedona.biz demonstrate my willingness to research issues before making a decision.

My position statement on the proposed Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) ordinance is nearly completed.

I am currently researching the background information on the issue of lighting 89A. I have yet to begin researching the city’s current fiscal issues.

Sedona.biz: What challenges do you see Sedona facing, long and short term, including the budget and the affect the economy is having?

Mr. Ward: The most pressing issue that the council faces is to bring Sedona’s expenditures into line with realistic-revenue projections. In order to do that, we, the people living in Sedona, must make an honest attempt to define what services we want the city to provide for us, how much it will cost, and where the revenues will come from.

These questions are particularly challenging because over one-third of the city’s entire budget is supporting wastewater treatment and infrastructure.

Compounding the problem is that not only are Sedona city sales, room and bed tax revenues declining in the current economy, but county and city revenue sharing from the state is in danger of being redirected to solve the state’s budget deficit crisis.

Without a doubt, we, as a community, are facing very difficult choices.

Without public input into resolving our budget quandary, the City Council has little chance of meeting the challenge in a way that will protect the unique qualities of life in Sedona.

As a council member, I would support commissioning a professional opinion poll of Sedona residents. The purpose of the poll would be to determine where the majority of us stand regarding the relative importance of various city-funded services to guide the City Council in their decision making.  This polling process would also be valuable in determining where the majority of us stand on the issues that divide us.

Sedona.biz: What is your position on the streetlights for 89A?

Mr. Ward: My full position statement on this issue is waiting the conclusion of my fact finding. My personal bias is against ADOT’s lighting solution of 89A in West Sedona.

I attended the City Council meeting where ADOT’s representatives said ADOT would accept the full package of recommendations agreed upon by the city’s 89A safety taskforce to solve the pedestrian safety issues in West Sedona in lieu of street lighting. They then stipulated that the city pay for those improvements.

I believe the City Council should have called ADOT’s bluff by rejecting ADOT’s lighting proposal and holding ADOT responsible for designing an alternative proposal more in keeping with the needs of Sedona.

Sedona.biz: What is your position on a National Scenic Area Designation for Sedona and on an alternate route through Red Rock Crossing?

Mr. Ward: As I have previously stated in my published position statements, the only drawback to implementing the NSA is the inflexibility of changing the restrictions imposed by an NSA designation.

I believe this to be a worthy tradeoff to protect the national forest lands around Sedona from land trades.

Those who still have doubts about the value of the NSA designation need to investigate a land trade proposal being requested by the Chapel of the Holy Cross.

Unable to purchase a private holding within the Amendment 12 area to exchange for the 11-acre parcel the National Forest Service has leased to the Chapel, they are asking to further amend the current Coconino National Forest Plan to allow an exception for the exchange of property outside of the Amendment 12 area to acquire the Chapel leased land.

As stated in my published position statement on an alternate route, Sedona is one of many stakeholders in an alternate route that would run entirely through unincorporated Yavapai County.

The city should neither fund any additional alternate route studies, nor take any leadership role in an alternate route proposal.

To meet the needs of the area communities, Yavapai County has paved Beaverhead Flat Road, SR 179 is being improved by ADOT for better traffic flow, and the Fire District has been granted emergency access to a private bridge over Oak Creek to provide an alternate emergency route to West Sedona and Cottonwood.

Sedona.biz: What skills do you bring to the table that make you the better choice?

Mr. Ward: As a member of the City Council, I have neither any personal nor special interests to promote. My interest lies in representing the people of Sedona and acting for the best welfare of our city.

My experiences serving as a director on many local, state, and international boards governing professional and volunteer organizations, including a faculty senate and a teacher’s union governing body, has provided me with extensive experience in working with others to solve contentious issues.

I have learned that one needs to listen to the concerns of others, sort through the facts, and reconcile those facts and the biases of others with my own personal biases to help bring a diverse group to a workable solution of a problem or issue.
I have served many of these organizations as either the presiding officer or parliamentarian advising the presiding officer on meeting procedural matters in accordance to Roberts Rules of Order.

Sedona.biz: What is your vision for Sedona?

Mr. Ward: My vision for Sedona is to preserve the uniqueness of Sedona’s natural environment and to promote harmonious relationships among the business community, the residents, the arts community, the not-for-profit organizations, the National Forest Service, and the many cultural groups that make up the larger Sedona Community.

Sedona.biz thanks Mr. Ward for responding to the interview and giving the public an opportunity to know where he stands on important issues. We look forward to responses from the other candidates as well.

The empty seat’s term will run until 2012 and the public will not be able to vote on who fills it until the term expires. The council will conduct the interviews of the candidates July 2 in the Vultee Room of the City hall complex starting 9:30 a.m. The council will choose Mr. Sterling’s replacement on that day.