Commissioner candidates discuss issues at public forum

By James Kmosko

Five candidates for Catawba County Commissioner attended a public forum on January 30th.

The forum was held at the Newton Public Library by the League of Women Voters of Catawba Valley (LWVCV) in cooperation with the NAACP Hickory Branch. It was moderated by Hickory Daily Record Community Editor Virginia Annable.

All seven Republican candidates for commissioner were invited to the forum. Candidate Jay Moore stated that he could not attend due to contracting coronavirus. Candidate Nicholas Bellomo did not attend for unstated reasons.

Candidates in attendance were Marla Thompson, Sherry Butler, Eric Dunn, Dave Fontana, and sitting Commissioner Cole Setzer.

Candidates were asked a range of questions, some of which were submitted by members of the audience. Each candidate had equal time to respond to each question.

According to the moderator, “half of the questions received were about the proposed school merger,” which would combine Hickory City Schools and Newton-Conover City Schools with the greater Catawba County School System.

Candidates Setzer, Butler, and Dunn voiced support for the merger, citing cost and capacity issues associated with the three systems.

“With the continuing declining enrollments that are occurring across our school systems, which feed into how our school systems are primarily funded, there is a large urgency and need for us to do this merger,” Commissioner Setzer said.

Thompson said she was “not opposed” to the merger, but recommended more studies before making a final decision.

Only Dave Fontana opposed the merger, saying, “I’m not for the merger, I don’t think that it’s necessary, … some of the infrastructure spending and saving, that I would agree with, but as far as education goes, it doesn’t benefit some of the areas as much as it does some of the others.”

The candidates were asked what infrastructure project they would prioritize to manage the increasing growth in Catawba County.

Butler said she would focus on ensuring adequate utilities, saying “you can’t have growth and expansion without having proper water lines and sewer lines.”

Fontana also said he would focus on utilities, saying, “a lot of the utilities that are here are very old. You’ve got a life expectancy of fifty years, and I’ve heard they’re probably about seventy-five years old.”

Dunn said he would focus on school infrastructure.

“I think that Sherrills Ford Elementary needs to be expanded,” he said. “The kids who live there are packed into mobile units and that could affect their quality of their education in the future.”

Commissioner Setzer also cited school infrastructure as the project he would prioritize.

“As we’re talking about the capacity needs of people being in mobile trailer units, those kids deserve to be in a fixed facility so that everyone can [be in a] place that gives them their best environment for learning.”

Thompson said she would focus on several types of infrastructure, including “roads, water, schools, and public safety,” also noting she “supports planned growth.”

Candidates were asked their reasons for running and their “number one goal” if elected as commissioner.

Thompson focused on her record as mayor of Long View, saying that the experience would help her make positive change in Catawba County

“I look forward to collaborating with the other commissioners and to give them the knowledge that I have.”

Butler said her primary goal would be to ensure public safety.

“I was born and raised here, and I’ve lived here sixty of my sixty-five years, and I have ten little reasons why I’m running, and they’re called grandchildren. This is my home, and it matters to me.”

Dunn said his number one goal was to be “the voice of Catawba County residents.”

“I spent twenty-five years as a city attorney, and I missed being involved in public service,” Dunn said. “We could’ve moved anywhere in the country, but we moved here. We love it here.”

Fontana focused on what he says is an increase in local bureaucracy.

“I am from New York, and I’ve been here six years, and I’ve seen bureaucracy grow here in the last six years. I think that because the county is growing fast, it might be too much for the department heads we have.”

Setzer said he was running for a second term as commissioner for his constituents, family, and community.

“The number one goal is to better the quality of life of citizens in Catawba County each and every year I serve.”

Candidates were asked what they thought were the three most important problems facing Catawba County.

Fontana said, “the school system merger, infrastructure issues, and the massive growth.”

Setzer said, “the school merger, stewardship of growth in our county, and our demography; this is an aging population, how do we manage [that].”

Thompson said, “school merger is the number one, taxes, and economic development and job attraction.”

Butler said, “obviously the school merger, and growth, but the one I want to spend time talking about is economic development and business.”

Dunn said, “The schools, the school merger, infrastructure opportunities, and economic development is key.”

The Republican primary will take place on March 3rd. The three Republican candidates with the most votes in the primary will advance to the general election on November 3rd and face off against the three Democrat candidates.

For more information on the upcoming election, visit the Catawba County Board of Elections website at www.catawbacountync.gov and click the “Elections” button under the tab marked “County Services.”

The candidate forum was livestreamed on the LWVCV’s Facebook page. To view a full recording of the livestream, visit the organization’s website at https://lwvcv.org or search for the league on Facebook.