Benton County Voters to decide three Quorum Court races

BENTONVILLE -- Benton County voters will decide three races for Quorum Court seats in the March 1 Republican Party primary.

Mike McKenzie and Sharon Whelchel are vying for the District 1 seat on the court. Ron Easley, the incumbent, moved out of the district and resigned his seat. A replacement will be named by the governor, but that person cannot run for the seat in this election cycle.

Justice of the Peace

District 1

Mike McKenzie

Age: 65

Residency: Rogers

Employment: Marketing manager for Molina Health Care

Education: Master’s degree in administrative science, University of Alabama

Political experience: Benton County Quorum Court justice of the peace, District 1, 2013 to 2014

Sharon Whelchel

Age: 61

Residency: Garfield

Employment: Retired part-owner of three companies in the portable restroom business

Education: Attended the University of Arkansas

Political Experience: None

District 2

Sue Shadlow

Age: 55

Residency: Rogers

Employment: Owner of an event staffing and bar tending service

Education: Attended Mount San Antonio College in Walnut, Calif.

Political Experience: Serving first term on Benton County Quorum Court

Joshua Bryant

Age: 37

Residency: Rogers

Employment: Part-owner of a commercial construction company

Education: Attended the University of Arkansas

Political Experience: None

District 11

Will Hanna

Age: 65

Residency: Near Vaughn community

Employment: Self-employed producer of heritage hogs

Education: Bachelor of science in management, California Coast University

Political Experience: Unsuccessful run for Benton County Quorum Court in 2012

Bob Bland

Age: 59

Residency: Centerton

Employment: Global sales director for Sakar-Vivitar

Education: Bachelor of Science in marketing from Maryville University in St. Louis.

Political Experience: None

Source: Staff report

McKenzie, 65, of Rogers formerly held the District 1 seat on the court, but lost to Easley in a runoff in the 2014 primary election. The district covers much of northeastern Benton County.

"I'm still very interested in trying to help make Benton County a better place to live," McKenzie said. "I would say I'm focused on improving our roads."

McKenzie said the county has to manage its budget carefully to ensure services continue while it works on big-dollar projects such as a new courts building. He's familiar with that issue from his service on the court from 2013 to 2014.

"The court building was started in my term on the court and has continued to play itself out," he said. "We need to be conservative in how we fund that."

Whelchel, 61, a Garfield resident, sees serving in county government as a continuation of her volunteer work.

"I've always volunteered, with the children's shelter, St. Jude, Easter Seals. I feel I have the time, and I can give back to Benton County," Whelchel. "I want to be a voice for families, a voice for the community. Benton County is where I call home. My children and grandchildren are here. I want to try to make it a better place for our and their future."

Whelchel has followed the debate over a courts building and favors a new one with all of the courts and related offices in one location, which will make it easier for people to deal with the system.

"I know a lot of elderly people in the district who like the idea of having one building to be able to go to," she said.

Whelchel said she also wants to the county to keep the old courthouse in use.

In the race for the District 2 seat on the court, incumbent Sue Shadlow faces political newcomer Joshua Bryant. The winner of the March 1 Republican Party primary will face Rey Hernandez, who filed as a Democrat, in November.

Shadlow, 55, of Rogers is in her first term on the Quorum Court. She said there's a substantial learning curve for anyone new to county government, which puts a value on experience.

"I have learned so much about government, about our county and our constituents, how the system works," she said. "It's sad that it's a two-year term. You can't learn it all in two years."

Shadlow said the new courts building and preserving War Eagle Bridge, which is in District 2, are big issues for her as is rural ambulance service and the county's budget. She said her preference is to keep the courts in downtown Bentonville, but any project has to meet the criteria set down by the circuit judges and others who will work in the building.

"We need to meet the criteria, to have a building that will do what the judges need, what everybody needs," she said.

Shadlow said she is opposed to funding the project through a tax increase.

"I think we can take some money out of the county's reserves and find some other way -- bonds or grants or something -- to pay for the rest."

Bryant, 37, of Rogers said he has always had an interest in government and service. Following the rural ambulance issue and talking to family and friends drew him into county government, which fit his interests and the demands of his family and career.

"I like the way they resolved the ambulance issue with the millage," Bryant said. "We all use the services so everyone should help pay for them."

Bryant said his work in civil service jobs with the federal government have given him some familiarity with budgets, which he would be able to draw on because the Quorum Court sets the budget. He said he also would like to have a voice in the discussion of a new courts building. He said he understands the emotional attachment people have to a courthouse on the downtown square, but other issues have to be considered.

"We've grown so big," he said. "As a resident of east Rogers, if I have a reason to go to the courthouse I don't want to have to go to downtown Bentonville, fight the traffic and look for parking, all the while hoping the Sheriff's Office is transporting prisoners properly that day. The people I've talked to, they all feel the same way. None of them feel it's a good use of taxpayer money to improve downtown Bentonville."

Bryant said the bottom line cost of the project could sway him.

Voters in western Benton County also will have a choice to make if they live within District 11, where the seat will be open since incumbent Steve Curry resigned last year. Curry's replacement, Mary Lou Slinkard, isn't eligible to run in this election.

Voters will choose between Will Hanna and Bob Bland for the Republican party nomination. The winner faces no opposition in November. Hanna, a former fire marshal for Benton County, ran unsuccessfully for the District 15 seat on the court in 2012, losing in a runoff to Barry Moehring. Bland is making his first political race.

Hanna, 65, lives in rural Benton county near the Vaughn community. He said his past experience with the county gives him first-hand knowledge of how county government operates.

"After my five years of working for Benton County, I had worked for three different county judges -- Gary Black, Dave Bisbee and Bob Clinard," he said. Hanna said at different times he supervised the building department, county planning and the environmental office.

"Now I find myself in a position to take that experience and apply it," he said.

Hanna said he's interested in protecting the rural character of Benton County even as its population grows. He said that's a concern he hears in District 11. He isn't talking about zoning for the county, he said, adding the problems are too complex and varied for a rigid set of rules.

Hanna said the courts building is the single largest issue facing the county. He said he understands the desire to keep the courts downtown, but isn't convinced it can be done.

"If we're going to build something to last us for 50 years or more, I don't think we can accomplish that downtown," he said.

Hanna said the county will continue to deal with rural ambulance service. He said the decision by Springdale to end service into rural Benton County shows the need for some kind of long-term plan or arrangement to keep costs under control while ensuring service.

"If we can continue to pay our fair share of the cost of ambulance service with our current providers, that's what we should do," he said. "But somehow we need to be able to control costs."

Bland, 59, of Centerton said he became interested in county government some years ago and decided to pursue that interest by seeking a seat on the Quorum Court.

"The more I immersed myself the more interested I got," he said. "When there was going to be an opening, I decided to try for it."

Bland said he sees the position of justice of the peace as a continuation of volunteer work to help the community. He said the debate over the location of a new courts building and how to pay for it are the biggest challenges facing the county.

"I don't believe we can build the facility we need downtown," he said. "When I hear the analysts report, I may be surprised, but I don't believe we can. The first feasibility study was very noncommittal, especially about parking. Most businesses will tell you if the parking spot isn't right there, it isn't there. I think that's true for a courthouse."

Bland said getting voter approval for any tax increase to pay for a courts building will be difficult. He said the county has to keep its costs low and make certain people understand that any tax will be used to pay for the building and then expire.

"I think if you can tell the voters that there's a 1/4 percent sales tax and it ends on this date, that might be the most palatable way to go. But you've got to educate the public and you've got to have everybody on board, the judges, the JPs and the county judge," he said.

NW News on 02/06/2016

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