Candidate Profile: Roger Henderson For Gig Harbor City Council

GIG HARBOR, WA — For the Aug. 3 Primary Election, Pierce County's 566,000 registered voters will be asked to weigh in on dozens of high-profile elections, including mayoral races in Tacoma, Eatonville, Buckley, and Bonney Lake. Nearly a dozen cities from Puyallup to Lakewood are holding city council elections, and six school districts will also have candidates on the ballot.

To help readers make informed choices, Patch asked candidates to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles as election day draws near.

Roger Henderson is running for Gig Harbor City Council Position 2

Age (as of Election Day)

69

Position Sought

Gig Harbor City Council Position 2

Party Affiliation

Non-partisan race

Family

Married with three adult children (38, 35 and 30)

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

No

Education

BS Environmental Planning & Management UC Davis 1975
BS Civil Engineering Oregon State University 1983

Occupation

Retired Civil Engineer (PE). 28 years with the US Army Corps of Engineers Sacramento District and 4 years with the US Army Europe, Grafenwöhr Training Area.

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

No elected office positions. I am currently serving on the Gig Harbor City Parks Commission.

Campaign website

http://www.voterogerhenderson....
https://www.facebook.com/VoteR...
https://www.instagram.com/vote...

Why are you seeking elective office?

This is my first time seeking elected office. I feel that the Gig Harbor City Council can use an experienced well-rounded engineer who can help them understand many of the issues that the city planners and city engineering staff bring to them for approval. By leading by example, I will work hard to bring back civility and respect in our meetings – especially towards our hard working and short-handed city staff. Gig Harbor needs to retain the talented city staff we have and attract new ones to replace those lost – they are the people who make things happen in the city!
The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

Over the last 5 or more years, Gig Harbor has rapidly grown. My canvassing in local Gig Harbor neighborhoods and speaking with residents, I hear about their concerns of unplanned growth, loss of our beautiful trees and loss of our small-town atmosphere. Growth in Gig Harbor is inevitable and even mandated by the state. With the use of smart planning policies, solid tree retention and replacement codes and solid architectural standards that fit the local neighborhoods we can grow while at the same time retain those features we love about this city. This will require close coordination with city staff, businesses, residents as well as county and state government. Working as a team we can achieve great things for the city and its residents.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

I bring my ability to identify problems, then collect and analyze data and reach out to others for additional input. Taking this measured approach will result in an informed and thoughtful decisions. I have experience assembling teams to get projects done and fully understand that no one person has all the answers, but together we can come up with solutions that meet our present and future challenges.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)

The current council member is vacating his position and has done an honorable job of serving the citizens of Gig Harbor on the council. His advice, experience and dedication to the City of Gig Harbor and its residents will be missed!

How do you think local officials performed in responding to the coronavirus? What if anything would you have done differently?

Locally our COVID19 response has been a part of a larger regional response ranging from state mandates to county health department guidance. In general, all local, city and state governmental bodies have done the very best job they could given the many unknowns associated with the virus such as means of transmission, challenges to sourcing and identifying appropriate analytical tests (especially at the beginning of the pandemic) and the unfortunate politicization of the severity of the crisis. I’d like to especially commend the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department for their outstanding leadership and educational efforts during this challenging crisis.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

Along with sustainable city growth and respect for our city staff, I support small business development in Gig Harbor… especially in the north harbor area. Small businesses develop a sense of community. I believe that it is time Gig Harbor begins taking steps to combat climate change and protecting the natural environment while increasing accessibility for walkers and cyclists. This, coupled with enhancing public transportation accessibility will reduce vehicle trips, reduce traffic, help mitigate parking issues in our small downtown area, and begin reducing our carbon footprint. I will support the formation of a local pedestrian/cyclist commission that will provide input to the council on improvements to sidewalks and bike trails – including safety issues. And finally, I wish to continue to recognize and acknowledge the history of the local indigenous people. Their history along with the others who came after only adds to what makes Gig Harbor such a wonderful place to live.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

Prior to retiring from the US Army Corps of Engineers, I was responsible for relocating the US Forest Service’s Kern River Ranger District offices, maintenance facility, visitor center, recreation facilities and fire department at the Isabella Lake dam. Their entire facility was in the footprint of the soon to be expanded auxiliary spillway. All US Forest Service facilities had to be relocated before the Corps could award a multimillion-dollar contract to renovate both earthen dams. I lead a team of engineers, planners, biologists, real estate specialists and consultants to locate and design new facilities. Close coordination with the US Forest Service and the public was essential for success. I am proud to say that all facilities were constructed and the Forest Service moved into their state-of-the-art buildings well before the Corps awarded the dam renovation contract.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

Think globally...act locally!

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

Gig Harbor has a lot of projects and challenges on its plate. We need to move ahead smartly to get them done for the overall good of the city and its residents. My pledge to the residents of Gig Harbor is to keep important projects moving ahead, support our hard working city staff and keep partisan politics out of our local government. I will be honored to have your vote on august 3rd!