County primaries
(Editor's note: Following are excerpts from Mail Tribune endorsements on three Jackson County primary contests. The Tidings is not endorsing in these races, but offers the following for readers' information.)
Keep Ross in office
Dan Ross has been Jackson County assessor since 1989. This year, Roy Wright, a property appraiser for decades himself, wants to replace Ross.
Both men are competent, reasonable people with a great deal of experience appraising property. We see no compelling reason to remove Ross, and recommend that voters re-elect him.
Wright, 67, worked in the assessor's office in the 1970s and is well-known for the monthly real estate sales reports that he makes available to the media. He says Ross and his staff have been unresponsive to property owners who challenged the valuations of their properties, and are too far behind on reappraising properties around the county.
Ross, 57, maintains that his office relies on the county Board of Property Tax Appeals to resolve disputes, and frequently recommends that property owners appeal their cases to the board.
Ross has been instrumental in developing a new computer system in partnership with other counties in the state. He speaks highly of his staff, which he says is the best he's ever had.
Ross also says he wants to continue serving because he loves the job. We see no reason to remove him from it.
Spoonts or Walker for clerk
With five candidates in the race for the nonpartisan position of Jackson County clerk, it's likely the top two vote getters will get to face each other again in a November runoff. With that background, we're comfortable recommending either Karen Spoonts or Chris Walker for the job.
The other three candidates are Cheryl Avgeris, a 16-year-employee and current supervisor in the clerk's office; Colleen Roberts, the owner of a bakery in Eagle Point who is currently completing her master's in business administration and Rick Schreffler, a business owner who has served on the Rogue Valley Transportation District board of directors.
Spoonts, a deputy city recorder for the city of Medford, and Walker, a 13-year veteran of the clerk's office who was appointed to the position by the Board of Commissioners earlier this year, rise to the top based on a combination of experience and leadership qualities. Walker has an edge in experience but we think Spoonts' years in the city recorder's office provide ample experience to make the transition to the county position and it's clear that those who work with her now consider her very competent and a quick learner.
We think the best outcome would be for Spoonts and Walker to advance to the November election so that voters could get to know them better.
Huck for surveyor
Darrell Huck and Kerry Bradshaw are both highly qualified for the position of county surveyor. Huck is our choice because he promises to devote all of his time to the county job.
Both men are licensed land surveyors — a prerequisite for the position — with decades of experience in Southern Oregon. Huck, 62, works for Hoffbuhr and Associates. Bradshaw, 58, owns Timberline Land Surveying.
The major difference between the two is that Huck plans to leave his job in the private sector and devote his full time and energy to the county position. Bradshaw says he will continue to operate his private surveying business to avoid putting his employees out of work.
Huck is offering his services unencumbered by other obligations. We think voters should take him up on it.
