LAKE COUNTY — The race for District 5 Supervisor is on. Incumbent Rob Brown announced Monday that he will run for re-election after two consecutive four-year terms.
Opponent Robert Stark is the only candidate currently running against Brown, according to the county Registrar of Voters office.
District 5 includes Kelseyville, the Rivieras area, Buckingham, Loch Lomand, Cobb Mountain and the surrounding area. Three seats on the Lake County Board of Supervisors will go before voters on in the June 3, 2008 Primary election for districts 1, 4 and 5.
Brown is beginning his eighth year as Dist. 5 Supervisor. While the June race for the county seat is not a partisan race, Brown said, “I see myself as pretty independent because I”ve not always gone with the talking points for the party I”m actually registered with.” Brown said he is registered as a Republican.
Stark came to Lake County in 1974 and became the general manager of the Cobb Area County Water District in 1984. Stark said he is running because “Lake County is on the verge of some major changes, and I want to be involved in those changes.”
Brown said his top priorities if he is re-elected are “working with our excellent county staff to improve foster care services for local families, protecting vulnerable senior citizens from abuse, maintaining county road improvement programs and providing the highest level of law enforcement to our communities.”
“Benefit zones are probably the most significant achievement we”ve had in this district, as opposed to other areas in the county,” Brown said. “We have a high number of subdivisions ? Buckingham, all the Rivieras, up on Cobb there are several ? we”ve been successful at taking on those subdivisions one at a time and doing a ballot measure for those subdivisions individually where they can vote whether or not to assess themselves to pay for the improvements.”
Brown said the county pays for the labor and divides the cost for materials among the property owners in each benefit zone.
Stark said that should he be elected, his priorities are improving water systems in Dist. 5 and in the county in general, protecting agriculture, ensuring smart development and protecting seniors and the disabled. Stark called himself a moderate Democrat.
Stark said he does not like the idea of benefit zones. “The county is supposed to take care of the roads, not have to come to you and assess you. I understand all the reasons why they”re doing it, because we don”t get enough of the gasoline tax, but that does not mean I have to like it and it doesn”t mean I have to sell it to the public.”
Stark added, “Maybe there”s no other alternative, but I”d like to see an experiment with forming some king of association of rural counties that can find ways to have more of a voice in Sacramento to get a bigger share of the road tax or other funding for infrastructure.”
Contact Tiffany Revelle at trevelle@record-bee.com
