Saturday, January 08, 2000
Butler Co. races heat up
Commission seat goal for Stoker
BY STEVE KEMME
The Cincinnati Enquirer
HAMILTON — Union Township Trustee Catherine Stoker will try to unseat incumbent Butler County Commissioner Chuck Furmon in the November general election.
Ms. Stoker, a high-profile Democrat in a Republican-dominated county, filed Fridayat the Butler County Board of Elections to run for commissioner.
Ms. Stoker will be unopposed in the Democratic primary, and Mr. Furmon, who is serving his first term as commissioner, will have no opposition in the Republican primary.
Ms. Stoker, in her second term as Union Township trustee, said she will base her campaign on a number of positions critical of the commissioners' spending and priorities.
Meanwhile, Commissioner Mike Fox, a Republican, will be challenged in the November general election by DemocratTerry Bridges, owner of Bridges Sportswear in Hamilton. Both are unopposed in the primary.
These are two of this year's most prominent countywide races. Friday was the filing deadline for the March 7 primary election.
The contested Butler County races pit incumbent Prosecutor John Holcomb, a Democrat, against Republican challenger Robin Piper; Republican Clerk of Courts Cindy Carpenter against Democratic challenger Brian Harrison; Republican Sheriff Harold Don Gabbard against Democratic challenger Alan Lany, assistant police chief of Fairfield Township; and Republican Recorder Danny Crank against Democratic challenger Darrell Collins.
Republican Carole Mosketti and Democrat Gail Livelsburger will be competing for the treasurer's seat. Current Treasurer Mary Law, a Republican, is not seeking re-election.
Republican Greg Wilkens, executive director of the Butler County Transportation Improvement District, is the only candidate who filed for the county engineer's race. Cur rent Engineer Dean Foster, a Republican, is not seeking re-election.
County Coroner Dr. Richard Burkhardt, a Republican, Judge Stephen Powell of the 12th District Court of Appeals and Common Pleas judges Keith Spaeth and Matthew Crehan are running unopposed in the general election.
U.S. Rep. John Boehner, R-West Chester, is being challenged by two Democrats, John G. Parks of Oxford and John Griffin of Miamisburg, and Libertarian David Shock of Oxford.
In the 4th District state Senate race, Republican incumbent Scott Nein of Middletown will face Democrat Arnold Engel of Fairfield and Libertarian David Dooley of Hamilton.
State Rep. Gary Cates, R-West Chester, will be challenged by Democrat A.C. Mitchell of Middletown.
State Rep. Greg Jolivette, R-Hamilton, will face Democrat Archie A. Johnson, former Hamilton NAACP director.
There will a host of issues on the March 7 ballot.
Union Township will ask its voters whether its name should be changed to West Chester Township.
Voters also will decide whether a new school district, the Monroe School District, should be created by consolidating parts of the Middletown and Lebanon school districts.
These are the tax issues on the ballot:
• Lakota Schools: A single 6.74-mill ballot question that includes a 4.9-mill bond issue and a 1.84-mill operating levy. The bond issue would raise $44.5 million to build an elementary school and a junior high school, and fund the first three years of a five-year capital improvements plan.
The $8.2 million that would be raised by the operating portion would provide money to open the two new schools and keep the district solvent for four years. If the single ballot question is approved, taxes would increase by $206 annually on a house with a market value of $100,000.
• Talawanda Schools: A 4.6-mill bond issue that would raise $29.9 million to pay for construction of a new high school and to renovate the existing high school for use as an elementary school. The cost to an owner of a $100,000 house is $141 each year in new taxes.
In addition, a 6.5-mill operating levy will raise about $2.86 million annually, enough to keep the district solvent through the 2002-2003 school year. The owner of a house with a market value of $100,000 would pay an additional $199 annually in new taxes.
• Fairfield: A 4.65-mill fire levy that would raise $3.8 million. The continuing levy would replace several fire and paramedic levies approved by voters over the past 16 years.
• Monroe: An additional 2-mill levy for fire and emergency medical services.
• Liberty Township: A 1.5-mill replacement tax levy and an additional 1.5-mill levy for police services.
Sue Kiesewetter and Michael Clark contributed to this report.
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