Woodmen Hills Metropolitan District residents will go to the polls May 4 to vote on candidates running for the district’s board of directors. Four positions are available; three board members will serve four-year terms and the other a one-year term.Voting will take place at WHMD Recreation Center West, 11720 Woodmen Hills Dr., from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Tuesday, May 4. Mail-in ballots must be received by May 4 or can be hand delivered to the district office by 4:30 p.m. that day. They can also be delivered to the polling place until 7 p.m. the day of the election.Of the current board members, only board president Jan Pizzi is not up for re-election.Money management, the role of the district manager, the impending need to build a new waste-water treatment plant, covenant issues and lawsuits are some of the hot topics being debated among the candidates.The following candidates e-mailed the NFH or spoke by phone to writer Natalie Gowen regarding their qualifications and ideas for managing the district. Four-year termEight candidates are running for three positions.Stan Burgess, retired, former Christian nonprofit administrator and US Army veteranstanburgess.infoBurgess has lived in Woodmen Hills for nine years. He regularly attends WHMD board meetings and has actively participated in board committees such as Parks and Recreation.He wants to diminish the influence of developers on the community, decrease spending and put an end to the many lawsuits the district is involved in.”I am running for the board because I have lived in this community for over nine years, and I’m concerned about our future. I feel that we have not had strong leadership in the past. My top priorities are to ensure an ample, affordable water/wastewater system and to bring spending and indebtedness under control,” Burgess said.Marti Wallner, program director, Meridian Ranch Recreation Center, YMCA of the Pikes Peak Regionmartiwallner.infoIt may sound like a clichÈ, but I am seeking a place on the board to make a difference in my community. I want to make sure that we are making sound decisions that are working toward our future. With an extensive background in recreation, budget management and (a) willingness to learn, I feel that I offer a dynamic forward direction.Being a financial conservative, I think it is important that we are not short sighted or over optimistic when it comes to our financial situation. I plan to ensure that the Water Board deals with the realities of our current situation and make specific action plans that positions us for future endeavors.The task of the Water Board is to monitor the efficiencies of the water, sewer, and recreational facilities of Woodmen Hills. I plan to establish and follow a business plan that provides those services to the citizens of our community through partnerships, efficiency, and no-nonsense communication.I want to make sure we have the availability of quality water that this community can afford for its existence. One way to do that is to explore building relationships with our neighboring water district, in order to learn from each other and possibly work collaboratively for the benefit of us all.I will make sure that Woodman Hills is in compliance with the state regulations and is fiscally responsible in meeting (the need for a sewer system). I will always look for a way to get the best value for our dollars. … I would urge the board to understand governing laws and potential collaborations that are mutually beneficial.Ken Beard, engineering program manager for ParsonsI believe in community involvement and want to see Woodmen Hills become a desired address. I have a background in engineering and do cost benefit analysis on large water and sewer systems and consult with large municipalities on the feasibility on projects such as the ones we will be experiencing. I can bring to the board an understanding to balance needs and wants of the Metro District and determine if the technologies proposed make economic sense. My top priority is water! Clean affordable water. I will propose to look into the billing practices and see if we can make the water more affordable while not sacrificing our need to invest in new capital projects.Robert Lovato, entrepreneurwww.protectwoodmenhillscommunity.comAs a resident of Woodmen Hills, my wife and I made it our home. We wanted to provide a future for our kids and have the amenities of the rec centers and parks. I have 16 years’ experience on community boards – on water boards and fire boards.I started going to the Woodmen Hills board meetings two years ago, and I saw they could use a person with a strong understanding of how boards work. I saw big divisions and saw they could use unity and focus. I believe I fit that bill.I am a subject matter expert on Title 32 and how boards are run. One thing that will kill a board is self-serving motives. If we can put that aside, we can be successful.I have a strong background in water issues. My number one priority will be to secure real water, not paper water. We need to quantify water in the wells we buy and only pay for what we actually get. We need to secure the water we need to meet our needs now and plan for future growth.Second, once we have the water, we need to treat it. I’ve learned, serving on boards, that we need to make good decisions. A lot of people want to go with the Cherokee and Meridian Ranch water treatment plant. If we do, then other people control our fees. I’m in favor of controlling our destiny and look at avenues to do so.Third, parks and rec are very important to me. It’s an organization that can stand on its own and be self-sufficient. I believe we can find creative ways to grow the system and add more features.Keith Moulton, appointed to the board in 2009, occupation, advance design engineerMoulton4woodmenhills@q.comThere are pivotal issues facing the future of Woodmen Hill Metropolitan District. I feel strongly that the direction the present board has taken is the best direction in order to not only maintain what we enjoy today, but also secure our future.As a district, we must look beyond past personality conflicts and ongoing vindictiveness. Neighbors should be treated with tolerance and respect. Decisions must be made from a business perspective.I am a property owner in this district; I want to see an increase in my property value. I want to feel secure in knowing that we have renewable water. I want to know that we, as a district, are the stewards and controllers of our resourses, not neighboring districts with their own self-interests. I believe in working together with neighboring districts as long as the interests of Woodmen Hills are protected.Members of the community have expressed a primary interest in our parks, recreation, and trails. Future plans for expansion of parks and recreation depend on a safe and healthy environment as well as securing additional funding without raising rates.We must secure renewable water. We have the choice of doing nothing or pro-actively finding renewable water. Either way, it will cost money whether it be drilling new wells to tap a diminishing water supply or finding and paying for renewable water and having our wells as a backup.Woodmen Hills must replace the current antiquated lagoon system that not only fails to meet current needs, but is also out of compliance and under a state issued Cease and Desist Order. Whether we build a new plant or become a customer of Meridian Ranch, it will cost money.Frank Gonzalez, configuration management/tools, Boeing Companywoodmenhillsforfrankgonzalez.comGonzalez wants to serve on the board because he believes his engineering background gives him an edge on analyzing issues and evaluating solutions. He is also familiar with the challenges facing Woodmen Hills because of his attendance at meetings for the past year and a half.To get a broader perspective on solutions, Gonzalez has attended meetings of surrounding districts to get an idea of what their issues are and how they deal with them.”Woodmen Hills residents deserve the best possible representation to address the challenges we face,” he said.Gonzalez’s priorities, if elected, include being a good listener, evaluating the situation and options and getting resident input before making a decision.One of the primary issues he expects to work on is finding a solution to resolve the cease and desist order from the state on the violations at the wastewater treatment plant.”This problem has been going on for too long. We need to find a way to work with our partners to get this resolved as soon as possible,” Gonzalez said.A close second issue is to resolve the covenant issue because that is one of the things that concerns many residents, he said.Al Kreps, senior vice president, director, The State BankI’ve attend a number of board meetings over the last three years. It seems to me we need to get things calmed down to have a more family environment. Then things we need to realize is that the residents of Woodmen Hills are the owners of the district. That means everyone pays when we become caught up in the lawsuits. I really believe we need to get the district in a positive place.We need different ideas and a difference of opinion is great – you can’t cut idea generation. But if your idea is not adopted, you can’t get nasty about it.I have many years of experience – 57 years in banking, as well as serving on boards in cities and counties.Our first need is to carefully monitor our water supply. Water is the gold of the west. Once we have that water we need to treat the waste water. The district is under a cease and desist order by the state because the treatment laws have changed. We need to get unity and working relationships with other districts and start working as a team and not adversaries to solve the problems.I would hope to work on these types of issues and reach out personally to other boards. You catch more bees with honey than with vinegar. If we could work together, everything east of Colorado Springs would be better off.We also need constructive planning for growth in order to get ahead of our bond indebtedness. One big money maker for the district is tap fees. In order to pay $15 million in bonds, we need a sufficient number of taps. We need to bring back builders and growth.David Hightower, network defense analyst, Booz Allen Hamiltondavehightower.info, woodmenhillsinfo.comI am running for the board because I disagree with where the current board has taken us – a fundamental disagreement on what the role of a metropolitan district is.This district was formed to provide water, wastewater and parks and recreation only; this is what the district promised the county and state that it would do, and this is what was approved for the district to do. See the service delivery plan for details.The district, however, has chosen to branch out into other areas, getting involved in covenant financing and enforcement, public relations, and becoming, in essence, a marketing arm for the developers who founded the district. This expansion is comparable to the federal government’s foray into health care: controversial, legally questionable, and expensive. Yet, the district has done this with little to no notice to, or input from, the residents.My top priority would be to restore the residents’ say into how their district is run. Currently, we do not have visibility into what the board is voting on; we are given no opportunity to ask questions; and we are given three minutes to speak at district board meetings before a vote is held. In many cases, we only have a bare agenda to go on to even know what to ask about.Where possible, I will ensure the residents have a chance to review what the board votes on, and comment beforehand. After all, it’s our money, and we should have a say on where it is spent.I can’t say everyone would be happy with the board’s decisions every time, but at least they would know what the options are and how the decision was arrived at.One-year termThere are two candidates running for one positionMarge Vaga, current board member, appointed in 2009, substitute teacher, D 49I’ve learned a lot in the 16 months I’ve been on the board. I also have the education and business background that is useful in many areas of the District operations.Obviously, the top priority for any candidate is to ensure that our wastewater treatment plant continues to be in compliance with the state law. However, we also need to restore harmony to the community and work to make Woodmen Hills an even greater place to live.Ron Pace, student, Colorado Technical Universitysavewoodmenhills.wordpress.comI am running to insure (sic) the community has a real voice. Community interest will always come first. I have witnessed this board allow the manager to run the show, when it should be the other way around.My promise is to change the negative stigma surrounding Woodmen Hills so current and future homeowners will benefit (higher home values) this is priority No.1. Hillers are not just a monthly payment, there are people, families, community members, mothers, fathers, uncles, aunts and children who deserve better.If elected, I will put an end to the hard-line covenant enforcement and fees taken from the budget. If elected, I will lay out a real plan to change covenants and how it’s applied to every home. I will not allow the district to take $124,000.00 out of the budget for covenant experiences.This District, like many governments, has expanded into many areas that are not part of the service plan. This ends up costing residents more money in the long run. Government has no business in our personal affairs; this is why they are called “personal” to begin with.Responsible development is not over development. We have a surplus of homes and a down market – this translates into lower home values. The district raised expenses by 14% last year. The growth rate was only about 4%. (2009, 2010 budget).District Salaries are 0%- 34% higher than with comparable districts (MSE, 2008). Woodmen Hills is known in certain circles as the Lexus of districts. We added new jobs when our growth didn’t warrant it, that’s wasteful spending.When a candidate makes statements on a flyer that are paid for by special interest, the question becomes are those statements from the candidate or the publicist they hired to write the flyers?I asked the “backed” candidates to debate me and none of them responded. You can’t debate the issues if the other candidates refuse to speak in public. I wish you all good luck.If elected, I will be “your” candidate. Thank you. “Frugal” is what grandmothers teach there (sic) grandsons. Thanks Grandma.I have made a recording that will be posted on savewoodmenhills.com please come take a look at “your” candidate.
