— from Donna and Michael Riordan —
After listening at length to both candidates for District 1 Councilor, we have decided to endorse Bill Watson. We are impressed by his command of the pressing issues facing San Juan County and by the deep management experience he will bring to this position.
Both candidates recognize the most urgent problem: affordable housing and rentals — especially for summer workers so crucial to our island economy. But this problem will not be solved by doing business as usual. We think Bill will bring more creative solutions to the table, including seeking the new sources of funding that will be required for the County to do anything effective.
In addition, Bill is willing to look further into the future of San Juan County and try to anticipate the impacts that climate change will likely have upon our islands in decades to come — including sea-level rise and ocean acidification. We appreciate his thoughtful, well-informed answers to the Islands Climate Resilience survey of the current candidates.
We are therefore voting for Bill Watson for County Council.
