Only voters in Ward 4 in Havre have a real choice in Tuesday's primary election.
Arnold Tyler and Allen "Woody" Woodwick are running for the Democratic nomination in Ward 4. Ronald Wolford and Erik Meis are seeking the Republican nomination.
Candidates for mayor and other city council seats open this year are unopposed in the primary. Joyce Perzyk and Carl White will both be on the ballot for the city judge position in the primary and general elections.
Below are questionnaires filled out by the Democratic candidates in Ward 4.
Arnold Tyler
Name: Arnold Tyler
Age: 62
Place of birth: Fort Benton
Length of time in Havre: 21 years
Political party: Democrat
Favorite TV show: CNN
Education: 12th grade
Last book read: (No answer)
Occupation: Semi-retired, landlord, part-time truck driver
Work history: Owned and operated dry-land farm, livestock feed business, custom grain trucking business for 10-years, union shop steward for five years
What are your qualifications for the position you are running for? 17 years on city council
What would you do to improve the economy and help existing businesses and attract new ones? Give tax incentives as we have in the past. Continue working with Bear Paw Development to help with financing where possible. Continue to improve our infrastructure so that Havre can service future needs.
What alternative revenue sources would you propose to make up for lost revenue due to legislative action? Any increase in revenue has to be approved by the voters.
What would you do to help provide training and access to modern technology (broadband Internet, etc.) to Havre? The city provides in all department budgets for travel and training. When new technology training schools are available, all employees have a chance to attend or be trained by those who do attend such training.
Should the mayor and city council lobby for and support the widening of Highway 2 to four lanes? The mayor and a council person have attended all local 4 for 2 meetings as a show of support.
What do you see as the top three problems facing the city of Havre, and how would you address them? Covered above.
Allen Woodwick
Name: Allen Woodwick
Age: 40
Place of birth: Havre
Length of time in Havre: All my life
Political party: Democrat
Favorite TV show: Law and Order
Education: Havre High School graduate, Johnson County Community College
Last book read: "The Homecoming" by Joseph Grizone
Occupation: Self-employed after working 20 years for B.N.S.F. Railroad
Work history: None
What are your qualifications for the position you are running for? I have been a lifelong resident of Havre as well as a taxpayer. I have a genuine concern for the city and believe Havre is a safe and healthy environment for my children and yours. I also have a vested interest in the business community as my wife, Keri, owns and operates a local business.
I feel I can dedicate myself to the Alderman position full time as I am currently self-employed after having worked for the B.N.S.F. Railroad for 20 years. During those 20 years, I held several leadership positions and was very involved with the safety committees and councils.
I will go the extra distance to represent Ward 4 and all of Havre and make myself available and listen to all sides of an issue.
What would you do to improve the economy and help existing businesses and attract new ones? We need to work with existing entities that help with grants, and instead of spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on attracting a single business that may or may not stay, we should come up with several smaller grants or low interest loans for existing businesses that are established or struggling. This way we would bolster existing local business while being careful that we attract new businesses that offer services or products that are not already offered. It will not do our community any good to bring in one business that runs out two.
We could look into promoting a wider variety of sports programs. The baseball, hockey and Class "C" tournaments bring in good revenue into the city. We should explore the possibility of attracting more tournaments and other sports, such as stock car racing or moto-cross racing.
What alternative revenue sources would you propose to make up for lost revenue due to legislative action? Fiscal responsibility and accountability are the keys to this issue. To avoid affecting our services, we have to curb wasteful spending in all areas of government.
What would you do to help provide training and access to modern technology (broadband Internet, etc.) to Havre? The adult education program would be an excellent and efficient vehicle for training. There are several computer service businesses that I'm sure would be willing to help with the process.
Should the mayor and city council lobby for and support the widening of Highway 2 to four lanes? I believe the 4 for 2 project has nearly unanimous bipartisan support along the Hi-Line. I have contacted my state and national legislators and urged them to continue supporting the project. I would go along with the mayor and city council supporting 4 for 2 even if it is largely symbolic.
What do you see as the top three problems facing the city of Havre, and how would you address them? 1. The economy, as answered in question two.
2. Energy. This is directly related to the economy. If power bills double or triple, we are going to lose even more businesses than we already have. I support state legislation to repeal deregulation.
3. Crime. I would work with the police, and I would support a neighborhood watch program as a deterrent to crime. As a further deterrent to crime, I feel we need to support the youth of our city and provide them with alternatives. So often we hear about the negative actions of some teens, but we don't take their energy and turn it into positive actions. One example is the teens skate boarding in the downtown area. I feel if we gathered the kids together with the support of the community, we could put them to work designing, building and maintaining a skateboard/roller blade park, like the hockey facility was done, without public funds. Our kids are smart. Let's give them credit and reward them.
