A vibrant newcomer to the local political scene has challenged one of the county’s most spirited commissioners in this year’s election for the Lane County Board of Commissioners north Eugene seat.
The experience of incumbent Bobby Green will face off against the environmentally friendly goals of Rob Handy as two more candidates, Steve Sherbina and Nadia Sindi, seem to be looking up at the race from less costly and less visible campaigns.
Green’s seat could be tough to take when the November elections come around because he is the board’s longest-serving member at 13 years, has served on a number of state and local committees and sat as a Eugene city councilor for six years. With the upcoming budget crisis the county is facing, his experience could prove to be a necessity on the board of commissioners in a difficult time, Green said.
“My years of making tough decisions and my thorough knowledge of the budget document and process for the budget committee provides me the experience to help guide the organization through finding solutions for balancing the budget as required by law,” Green wrote in an e-mail.
However, it’s not what Green has done but what he hasn’t done that is stirring up his biggest opponent in Handy.
A 2006 “environmental scorecard” of Lane County commissioners was released by the Oregon League of Conservation Voters. The report gave Bobby Green the second lowest grade of the six commissioners serving at the time – 25 percent, or the equivalent of an F.
Handy has been very vocal in what his environmental agenda is and his endorsement cache includes the OLCV, the Sierra Club and the Oregon Natural Resources Council. Handy wrote in an e-mail that he received these conservation group endorsements because “Bobby Green is not green.”
Eugene residents have a very noticeable record of voting for candidates who have green goals, and Green used his previous election wins as an example of how he has been protecting the environment.
“First of all, it’s hard not to be an environmentalist and be elected by the people of Eugene,” Green said. “I have made several votes on matters that include conservation and preservation, but receive no credit for those votes that I (cast), e.g. biodiesel, protecting the dunes in Florence, preserving parklands for future generations etc.”
While both candidates may be arguing about what they have done or what they hope to accomplish in environmental matters, the county’s budget crisis is looming just around the corner.
Commissioner Bill Dwyer wrote in an e-mail that he doesn’t think it will significantly affect the board of commissioners if either Green or Handy wins. What needs to be focused on is how to balance the budget, he added.
“Political rhetoric is cheap. You have to make the right decisions for the right reasons, knowing you cannot please everyone. You need to be able to explain why you made the choices you made,” Dwyer said.
Green said the choices he has made and will make come from his long experience, while Handy said his decisions will come from a desire to change the direction of the county.