City growth is key in Third Ward race
Published Feb. 13, 2007
With city elections less than two months away, Gary Kespohl and Karl Skala, candidates for the Third Ward Columbia City Council, are perfecting their message for Columbia voters.
Bob Hutton, the current Third Ward councilman, has chosen not to seek re-election in April.
"I've been on the council for 12 years," Hutton said. "I figured that was enough time."
To Hutton, the ongoing debate about city development should prove to be the biggest, most divisive issue for not only the Third Ward but for the entire city. The candidates' philosophies on development — whether they have an even and balanced or a single-minded approach — are important to the future of the city, Hutton said.
Skala said he hopes to add to his record of community service with a City Council seat. After serving for six years on the Columbia Planning and Zoning Commission, Skala said running for the City Council was the next logical step.
"What my candidacy means is a principled, responsible voice for the Third Ward and open, accessible and responsive city government," Skala said.
Skala said the three main issues he will focus on are making neighborhoods safer through increased police responsiveness, increasing the quality of roads and city services and thoughtful city planning.
Skala said burglaries in his ward convinced him of the need for better police protection, and two abandoned road projects in his ward make him suspect that the Third Ward is being neglected when it comes to road development. But with his years on the Planning and Zoning Commission, Skala said city development is the issue dearest to his heart.
"This anti-growth thing is not an issue," Skala said. "A lot of people who are labeled as anti-growth are actually pro-growth management."
Skala said he wants to focus the city's development projects on already-developed areas with infrastructure in place instead of continuing to focus on the urban fringe.
"The further expansion goes from the center of the city, the less chance there is for taxpayers to share in the benefits of growth," he said.
Kespohl said Columbia's expansion and development are the election's biggest issues, but he doesn't think it's possible to stop Columbia's growth.
"I get asked by reporters, 'Are you pro or anti-expansion?' and I keep telling them I'm neither," he said. "I'm pro-Columbia. I'll look at every proposal for its own merit and decide whether it's good for Columbia."
Kespohl said that residents' families have expanded between 1990 and 2000 and grown children create more than 4,800 new households in Columbia. He cited this as a reason that planning is important for the city's future.
As for Third Ward-specific issues, Kespohl said traffic problems around Interstate 70 and Clark Lane could be solved through lane and road extensions.
Kespohl said he is concerned about crime and police coverage in the Third Ward.
"We're getting to the size where we're not able to give adequate police protection to the entire city from their downtown location," he said.
Kespohl said if he is elected, the fact that he is a business owner could bring a fresh perspective to the City Council.
Elections for the mayor, the Third Ward and the Fourth Ward will be held April 3.
