||| FROM RICHARD FRALICK |||
I am delighted to announce that my good friend Rick Hughes has decided to run for the Orcas position on the San Juan County Council in 2024. Rick is a former County Councilmember and I think exceptionally well qualified. Please join me in supporting his candidacy.
Rick Hughes is a third generation Orcas Islander who, with his wife Marlace, owns and operates several businesses on Orcas Island. As a small business owner, Rick understands what it means to balance a budget and meet payrolls. Rick served on the County Council from 2013-2020 during which time he proved he could get things done. Under Rick’s leadership:
- For the first time in 25 years the County, as required by law, became fully compliant with the Washington State Growth Management Act.
- The County operated with a balanced budget while reducing its debt and increasing its Rainy-Day, Capital and Lodging Tax Reserves.
- Resources were generated and used to improve the County’s infrastructure. Bridges were replaced, walking paths added and roads improved. The Park-N-Ride facility on Orcas was completed.
- Good working relationships with neighboring counties and state legislators were established. This resulted in synergistic approaches to solving shared problems. Rick has a strong understanding of ferry issues and has established relationships within the ferry system that can help resolve this major concern for San Juan County.
Governance is complicated and requires making difficult choices. Over 8 years of decision making, it is not possible to please everyone all the time. What is important is to make decisions honestly with an open mind, examining the issues and listening closely to the community’s concerns. While in office Rick did just that.
Rick’s pledge to the Community, “To operate a fair, honest and transparent government, to work for better communications and interaction between county employees and the public and to have county government serve as an aid to the public. In short, to give the government back to the community. I know this will not be an easy job, but I promise to listen, learn, be fair, honest and to act in the best interest of Orcas Island and San Juan County.”
I admire Rick’s integrity and respect his approach to governance. Please join me and vote to return Rick Hughes to the San Juan County Council.
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Yeah!!!
Rick has my vote
I am all in for Rick.
Most of us wouldn’t vote for you again Richard, so why would we vote for Rick.
Republican, conservative, balls to the wall development, tourism, and growth… money, money, money. No thanks!
These do not represent the reasons why I moved here for, these are not the values that represent me.
For the record, Rick is a registered Democrat. How do these rumors get started?
I will do any thing I can to get Rick elected. T
All out for Mr. Johnson. Why don’t you run for office sir? What do you represent beyond continuous negativity?
Um… there are those that are not qualified, and there are those that are undeserving… I see myself as the former. I have no desire, nor do I consider consider myself qualified to serve as a county councilman. I do, however, have a desire to represent myself within my rights to express my opinion. It’s not all positive Gary, and, like you, I have a right to call it like I see it. The people of SJC deserve better than the same old same old.
Did I mention, “Republican, conservative, balls to the wall development, tourism, and growth… money, money, money. No thanks!” These may represent your values Gary, but they do not represent the reasons why I moved here, these are not values that represent me.”
It’s not all about money, and we are our own worst enemies– Tyson de Grasse: “What scares me the most is that we, as a species, are not wise enough to protect us from ourselves.”
https://www.instagram.com/reel/C3yE5xGtmkV/?igsh=b3R0cG44OXRqODhj
Bismark famously said, “Politics is the art of the possible.”
Rick Hughes’ previous tenure as county councilman clearly demonstrated that he is not an idealogue and is both willing and capable of listening to differing opinions and of making balanced decisions that are both principled and practical. Compromise is a verboten word to many on both of the extreme ends of the political spectrum but compromise is precisely what is required in any functional democracy. Do not let the perfect become the enemy of the good. Rick has already proven that he is a capable, competent, council member that will listen to ALL his constituents, not just the radical loudmouths.
Yes, nobody is perfect. But, from one “radical loudmouth” to another– too often in today’s political spectrum “compromise” is just a form of acquiescence to the status quo… it’s saying, “let’s keep doing things the way we’ve done it in the past… this not representing change for the common good. Stepping outside of the boundaries of the accepted norm and stating anything even remotely different from the status quo is always seen as being radical in the eyes of those who’s opinions differ. MLK Jr. was considered radical, JFK was radical, Daniel Ellsberg was radical, Noam Chomsky is considered radical. In our society, even people who stand up for such moral issues as environmental rights, or human rights, or equal representation, and justice for all are considered radicals by opposing forces.
Having listened to comments made at past Council meetings when all parties present thought they were off-mic does not give one any assurance that our past leadership was an example of equal representation of all parties. In fact, “radical loudmouths,” and “those Eastsound trouble-makers” was the very rhetoric being presented at that moment in time. Such sentiment is one that is groomed over time, and is a sign of a top-down style of leadership that does not represent equal representation.
This is not an endorsement, but I find Michael’s comments unfair and offensive. Having worked on both the EPRC and Land Bank with Rick during his council tenure, my experience is that he makes opportunities to listen to his constituents, sponsors community forums, is flexible and open to compromise and allows his views to evolve. He has worked hard for us in Olympia on ferry issues and to develop regional partnerships. We may not agree on all viewpoints and issues, but issues are often multi-sided and politics is about compromise. Rick has worked hard and well for the benefit of the San Juan community. I would welcome him to the race, and let the issues be debated.
Michael’s problem is that he can’t deal with a changing world and how Orcas can fit into it.
You hit the nail on the head Dan… quite unlike you. We don’t have a difference in opinion… we have a difference in morality. The picture that you, Rick, and the growth and tourism with no limits crowd have for San Juan County is not the same vision that myself, nor many others, have for the future of our island communities. Some things, for some people, mean something more than money.
For those that find my comments offensive I apologize.
That being said, the successes of the EPRC and the Land Bank are to-date variable in the eyes of many. Having myself been involved in SJC politics, what I found unfair and offensive in the past administration were politicians that, in the name of compromise, marginalized those who disagreed with them while continually aligning themselves on the side of those that were in agreement with their philosophy, mainly the growth and tourism industries, and they did so while feigning that they were representing “those with a lesser voice.”
Give me a break… since when have the proponents of the too big to fail, real-estate, lodging, vacation rental, and tourism industries ever had a lesser voice in SJC?
For someone who is concerned about over-tourism, Michael, your crusade against vacation rentals has had absolutely zero effect on stopping it. And high moral values? What about your carbon footprint, as you drive your exhaust belching automobile? You also crusade against adding any accommodations for cyclists, which would encourage more people to ride bikes, instead of crowding our roads with more cars.
Though it might be difficult for you to comprehend, my working with a team in the recent past that was successful in implementing limits on vacation rentals, (thank you Cindy), did indeed represent a stopping point, and is a good start towards preventing over-tourism.
“And high moral values?” None of us are perfect Dan… ya got me. It’s true, I do drive about 10 miles per week.
I am not, for the thoudsandth time, against bicycles and alternative modes of transportation as you so incorrectly like to frame it. But I’ll continue saying that to you again, and again, and again until it finally sinks in. If you were truly paying attention Dan, you might note that I am also not for “crowding our roads with more cars.” As I am not a proponent of increased tourism I do not support increased bicycle tourism. More specifically, I’m against your annual bicycle festival growing into an event that will eventually bring hundreds, or like Lopez perhaps, thousands of bicyclists out here. In studying tourism in other communities, one effective tool I’ve seen used to limit tourism is to limit the number of, the size of, and the duration of annual events… which is something that I do support.
You promote the idea that an increasing number of bicycle tourists coming out here as somehow being good for the environment, when in reality, tourism hosts one of the largest carbon footprints on the planet, and the bicyclists do, afterall, have to come here from somewhere. That is, they drive their cars from somewhere to get to the parking lot in Anacortes, then they offload their bicycles in the parking area there before getting on the ferry to come here. Your analogy that this type of increased tourism is good for the environment because it’s a cleaner form of transportation, is a bit like trading carbon credits as a means to limit our carbon footprint. The reality is, trading carbon credits is only that, it offsets the amount of carbon emissions from the increase of one activity by doing something that will offset the amount of carbon that’s being produced… but in reality it does nothing to actually reduce the carbon footprint as it’s the increased use that is the problem. Increased tourism, no matter what type, means an increase in the carbon footprint.
If increasing our carbon footprint were the only problem relative to over-tourism I could better live with that… but it isn’t.
As one who is not anti-tourist, but has seen other communities that I’ve lived in destroyed by over-tourism, I am not, as you obviously are, a proponent of putting us on the map and promoting for more tourism. The visitors bureau and the Chamber of Commerce do enough damage in this respect on their own.
You said it well when you stated, “Michael’s problem is that he can’t deal with a changing world and how Orcas can fit into it.” Yeah… that pretty much sums it up. For some of us Dan, it’s simply not all about money. Some of us love our island communities as they are. We moved here because of what it was… not for what we could transform it into, and we realize that the “uptown changes” that you and Rick represent, will forever change the rural atmosphere that we cherish, and destroy our sense of community. “Once it’s gone it’s gone forever.”
You’e getting kinda personal Dan. And though I don’t have a problem with that you might consider lightening up a bit so that you don’t offend Brian.
Nice intro Richard. I first met Fralick when I attended and commented at the meetings held by the “Coalition for Orcas Health Care” to implement a PHC. I was skeptical but when it came to vote the initiative was passed and the Orcas Island Healthcare Clinic was formed with commissioners Fralick, Patty Miller, Art Lang, Pegi Groundwater and Diane Boteler MD. I voted against it and was still skeptical. For the next three or so years I attended most of the meetings occasionally commenting and not always agreeing. As it turned out I have rarely met a more dedicated or hardworking group. They built the foundation that our newer commissioners can follow.
I have followed Rick at a distance and I am glad he is running. As Brian said……”let the issues be debated”.
This makes my week!!
Rick Hughes has the knowledge, experience, professionalism and patience for the job.
He has the best interests of our island and all who live here at heart, and that, my friends, is not an easy task to balance.
Rick has my vote.
There are many fine compliments I attribute to Rick – a great Citizen of our Community is at the top of my list. Thank you for your many years of Service !!!
Rick will be a returning breath of fresh air. It will be good to have someone with a positive vision of what Orcas really needs.
Having had a long running personal and business dealings with Rick, I’m happy to hear he’ll be on the ballot next fall.
Well, well, well. Go ahead and tell me who brought Covid Shots and Shingle shots and a place to get those pesky “off Island” medical RSV things and whatever an old Islander needed to mix with all those “tourists” that flock here on the ferries that sometimes run? Who was in Olympia asking and pressing to “do something for the Island bound folks that needed to get to off island appointments.
I’ll vote for the guy with the knowledge of the workings in the big world. We are now faced with a huge rush of big city problems and we keep talking about the wonderful old time answers.
I will vote for Rick Hughes even if he is a Republican, even if he is a Democrat. He seems to give a hoot about this Island and he’s put his energy where it matters.
Linda Henry
Agreed , Thank you, Linda.
Janice: For the record, we do not register by political party in Washington State. Rick may identify that way but interestingly, in their 2020 campaign, now Councilmember Cindy Wolf won the county democrats endorsement. I believe she also earned the support of the Democratic Women’s Caucus. I wonder if Rick sought either of these organization’s support.
Jean and I will vote for Rick Hughes.
And if Richard Fralick ever wants to run for public office again, we’d vote for him, too.
I don’t care what party Rick belongs to. We elect the person, not party platforms: see §5.32 of the county charter.
I’ve worked with Rick, and agree whole-heartedly with everything Linda said.
Rick worked with me to assure better access for kayakers to put-ins like at North Beach, for which I am forever grateful.
On the other hand, he voted with Jamie Stephens to reopen SJC to business prematurely in June 2020, despite the (then rather thin) scientific evidence that this was not a good idea, only to be rebuffed by Dr. Frank. That’s the main reason I voted for Cindy Wolf.
And we must all remember that Rick cast the deciding vote that put Alex Ramel into offiice.
Andy:
San Juan County Council positions are non partisan as established by the San Juan County Charter.
In the four elections that I have participated in (the first was for a 6 person council and that term lasted 4-5 months because the charter changed the council from 6-3 person council) I have honored the language and intent of the San Juan County Charter and have run as an independent/non-partisan candidate.
I have not sought, requested or filled out any application for party endorsement as that is not the intention of the Charter.
Any endorsement from any political party I have or have not received has come from the party and not accepted or approved by me or the campaign team.
After my term of office was over, I immediately registered with the party I support. I have held many fundraisers on Orcas island and personally supported candidates in local, state, federal and presidential candidates.
It is important for San Juan County Council members to be non partisan and to attempt to represent the entire county .
In my opinion, local governments should not be partisan, local government fills pot holes, assists with housing, supports the general health of the community, provides access to public spaces, improves transportation and represents the people of the County regionally, statewide and with federal partners.
And above all else Mr. Hughes is SERVICE, which you have exemplified.
Dr. Riordan, with 20/20 hindsight Mr. Hughes and Mr. Stephens appear to have been correct in their votes. Johns Hopkins metastudy included a wide range of detrimental outcomes associated with the drastic restrictions imposed during Covid, including irreparable damage to every child in our secondary schools, economic damage, psychological damage, sociological damage, physical damage, etc. This study recommends that such measures NEVER be taken again.
They were not and are not justified by any objective analysis. I know that you disagree and will point to SJC case rates, but SJC is an extreme outlier with key determinants being our insularity, self restriction on social interaction and contact tracing by Dr. James team that was substantially enabled by our small population. Masking, social distancing, business and school closures had no discernible effect on outcomes across our 50 sates or in Europe where the Swedes, with no restrictions had comparable outcomes to Germany with draconian restrictions.
Mr. Appel, Mr. Hughes I agree completely that local government should be non-partisan, but it is not! IMHO The democratic party machine was in full play during the last election where its Vice-Chair, Cindy Wolf resigned prior to announcing her candidacy – The notion that an endorsement would have gone elsewhere strains credibility. The machine harvested votes for its candidate and the voters of this county need to realize that, ask themselves how they really want tp be served and vote accordingly.
Phil Peterson what a load of nonsense. people who’s lives were robbed by long COVID beg to differ as to the “objectivity” of your claims. And now we’re a forgotten problem brushed under the rug in the name of commerce as well as witnesses of a phony declaration of the pandemic ending.
I voted against Rick for his COVID stance and I will not be voting for him in the future under any circumstance.
Got it. Thanks Rick. And I second Michael’s comment about Representative Alex Ramel. He is an environmental and affordable housing champion and has been an important ally in helping Governor Inslee advance his progressive conservation agenda. Well done sir!
Phil, just because the office isn’t a political one doesn’t mean that those staffing it aren’t allowed to have a personal preference of political affiliations, and that that political party affiliation doesn’t mean something to the voting public. Political party affiliation is a mindset, and as humans our political beliefs are often an extension of who we are, and they do have a way of playing out in our decision making processes. As a progressive I’m very careful about who I vote for as both the democratic and the republican parties at the national level have both proven to be a great disappointment to me.
You stated, “The democratic party machine was in full play during the last election where its Vice-Chair, Cindy Wolf resigned prior to announcing her candidacy – The notion that an endorsement would have gone elsewhere strains credibility.”
It’s quite a stretch to accuse somebody who was volunteering their time to serve the political party that they’re affiliated with of acting in bad faith for making a decision to run for local office and quitting their position within the party in order to focus on their campaign. Many politicians step back from their day-to-day roles in life in order to focus on their campaigns while running for office.
Likewise, it’s quite a stretch to claim that the local democratic party’s credibility was somehow “strained” by it’s decision to endorse Cindy Wolf during the last election. In speaking to some of the representatives of the local democratic party I was told that Rick Hughes had been asked if he wanted to be considered for the democratic party endorsement before the last election but he chose not to. That’s his prerogative. This did not mean that the local political parties were prohibited from making endorsements, this being one of the roles that political parties play in elections.
“Democratic machine” in SJC county? Hardly. While the democrats are the majority party in San Juan County their active political party membership is quite small. And yes, the party did donate a couple hundred dollars to each of the campaigns of the candidates of their choice during the last election, (Cindy Wolf, and also Ryan Palmateer, a candidate running in the San Juan race). But there’s absolutely nothing unethical, illegal, or unusual about a political party supporting their chosen candidates at any level of the political spectrum in this manner. This is how it’s commonly done.
I expected no less, democratic misdirection on full display.
I understand “Non-Partisan” to mean that the organized political parties stay out of it completely. No endorsements, no funding, no vote harvesting, no nothing! If they are involved then what does “Non-Partisan” mean? IMO My Mr. Hughes ethically upheld the intent and meaning of see §5.32 of the county charter by declining to be considered for a party endorsement.
Individuals are at liberty to affiliate with whomever they please and volunteer as they please, but no political machine? On this very site I recall an article with a group in front of a bus, democrat activists going to the mainland to walk precincts for Dhinka Manka – that’s machine politics, so denying that a machine, a mechanism for advancing political goals exists in our county is indeed a “stretch”, and the voters in our county deserve to know that it exists and is involved in our “Non-Partisan” elections. That’s merely full disclosure of facts.
Mr. Porter you’ve got your pain and I’ve got mine. On balance the measures taken to contain covid were largely ineffective and should NEVER be taken again. Those who recognized this at the outset, including eminent public health authorities were ridiculed and suppressed in both the mainstream and social media. We know in retrospect that the current democratic administration was complicit in that censorship. That does not mitigate or minimize the deaths or residual health effects from Covid, including “long Covid” nor does it repair collateral damage from restricting “non-essential” routine exam during the lock-downs.
Last year I re-established routine exams for specialized conditions including dental cleaning and eye exams. Seems that during the lock-downs I developed glaucoma with modern vision loss. It has been arrested, but it cannot be reversed – a permanent loss that I must live with going forward, no whining, victimhood or demand for reparations. It is what it is.
“I expected no less, democratic misdirection on full display.”
And remind us again why such a rabid anti-democrat is such a staunch supporter of Rick Hughes?
As I’ve written before, like Ronald Reagan, I didn’t leave the Democratic Party it left me.
Right now before our eyes the democratic party is intentionally destroying my country and as Mr. Burke observed, “evil prevails when good men do nothing”. Progressive democrat’s mantra “The end justifies the means” enables them to lie, cheat and steal with a straight face, you don’t need to look any further than the evening news for a multitude of examples.
One of the tactics being used by “progressive democrats”, is undermining the rule of law which starts with your rationalizations for disregarding the non-partisan rule. It may not be illegal but it most certainly is unethical. You noted Mr. Hughes declined an opportunity for partisan endorsement which speaks to his ethics and integrity.
I’ve not endorsed Mr. Hughes, but perhaps you can remind us again why we should not choose an ethical, trustworthy candidate with a solid record of service?
It’s said that the political spectrum in this country has moved to the white, I mean right, (but then I repeat myself) over time. That the D’s are now what the R’s were 20 years ago. Extremism on either end of the spectrum does not seem healthy, and it appears that many countries have become more fascist in the past few years.
That being said, however, when I look at the news it appears to me that it is the progressives in congress that are lifting the veil on extremist U.S. failed foreign policy practices, policies that are supporting wars by proxy, and continually sending money and arms to trading partners that have a habit of murdering U.S. citizens and committing genocide (with Israel and Saudi Arabia topping the list) on resource rich countries that pose little threat to our national security. In line with this the common question has become, “Who runs this country anyway?”
“I’ve not endorsed Mr. Hughes…” sounds like an endorsement to me, (that being your prerogative).
“… but perhaps you can remind us again why we should not choose an ethical, trustworthy candidate with a solid record of service?”
We should, that’s why I’m supporting Cindy Wolf in the upcoming election.