Growth is top concern for council candidates
Position 1 race features Jon Russell and Jenny McCullough

By Dawn Feldhaus, Post-Record staff

Voters in Washougal will have an opportunity to decide in the Nov. 6 General Election, whether to retain appointee Jon Russell or elect challenger Jenny McCullough, to the Washougal City Council Position 1 seat.

Jon Russell

Russell, 31, was appointed to serve on council in September 2006, after Mary Bosley resigned for health reasons.

He owns Northern Concepts, LLC, in Washougal.

Russell cites growth as a major issue in Washougal.

“Making sure we have smart growth — that we’re using the land we already have more wisely,” Russell said. “We should look at ways to infill the city rather than sprawling the city — bring in more jobs, businesses and retail — so that people have more options to shop here locally.”

He supports the idea of hiring a business recruiter, to attract companies to Washougal.

“It’s going to help us in the long run to recruit these businesses, because it will come back to us with retail taxes and give jobs to the people who live here.”

Russell thinks the water rates for Washougal residential property owners are too high, and he favors the implementation of an incentive program to encourage residents to conserve water.

He is also concerned about state and federal unfunded mandates.

“We are being forced to establish a storm water utility district, which is going to charge people in Washougal for storm water runoff,” Russell said. “It was forced on us by the federal government, I believe. There are no dollars attached to it.

“The federal government is imposing on the people of this city, and quite frankly I’m just tired of it,” he added. “It’s not good government. Either fund the mandates, or don’t give us mandates. Don’t hang us out to dry.”

Russell hopes to move forward with a “quiet nights” ordinance, which would require train conductors to not blow whistles in town, overnight. If the ordinance is passed, longer cross arms would have to be installed at the crossings.

In addition to previously being an aid to U.S. Congressman John Hostettler, of Indiana, Russell has worked on the Washington State Legislature caucus staff and served as director of First Class Education for Washington. He has also worked as vice-president of operations for Worldview Multimedia Technologies, LLC, and owned The Potter’s Cup Coffee House, in Bloomington, Ind.
“I bring a unique perspective to the council, because I have done nonprofit work and corporate America, and I have worked for the government,” Russell said. “I have a healthy insight into what makes good government. I’ve done all three.”

He foresees challenges arriving in the form of the proposed RiverWalk on the Columbia LLC project, the potential Camas-Washougal community center and the continuing development of downtown Washougal.

“There’s a possibility RiverWalk could come before us in the form of a zoning change, and I can’t take a position,” Russell said. “I have to give everyone who comes before us a fair hearing.

“I hope that the port commissioners will preserve the historic park and access to the river via the marina,” he added.

Russell serves on a publicity subcommittee for the joint community center.

“I am fully supportive of the community center,” he said. “I’m concerned about the metropolitan parks district aspect of it. Are we in a position to truly take on another taxing district to support this?

“If the community center can get funded with private dollars, we can get it done a lot quicker probably and not be a burden on the taxpayers,” Russell added. “The joint community center needs to happen.”

In addition to serving on the board of directors for the Camas-Washougal Chamber of Commerce, he is on the Washougal Gateway to the Gorge Farmers Market steering committee and the leadership board for the Washougal Salvation Army. Russell is a member of the Washington State Farm Bureau, and he serves as the council liaison to the Washougal School District.

Russell, a former chairman of the Washougal Parks Board, is a member of New Life Fellowship Church. He has an associate’s degree in criminal justice from the University of Phoenix.

Russell and his wife Sarah are the parents of one daughter.

Longtime resident McCullough seeks council seat

Jenny McCullough

McCullough, 29, has lived in Washougal most of her life. She spent eight years in the navy, serving as an aviation maintenance administrationman second class.

McCullough’s father, Lornie, is a former Washougal School board member and city council member. He now resides in Camas and will soon retire after working 30 years at the Washougal Post Office.

“I grew up knowing you do your civic duty,” McCullough said. “That’s also why I joined the military. You don’t turn away from things like that.

“I can’t imagine living anywhere else,” she added. “Joining city council would be a natural thing for me. I want to stay here and do my part, and have my kids feel the same way when they grow up.”

McCullough is the mother of three children. She is a student at Apollo College, studying to become a medical assistant and exchanging her military CPR instructor qualification for a civilian instructor qualification.

McCullough includes the continuing growth of Washougal as an issue of interest.

“Making sure that while Washougal continues to grow and improve for the people, that it does not lose the feeling that I grew up with,” she said. “It’s a small town. You go to the grocery store, and you bump into five people you know.

“Going about your daily life, you run into family and friends,” McCullough added. “It’s nice to have the small town feel. I don’t want to see that ever go away.”

She feels her longtime residency and time in the navy could be advantageous on city council.

“Because I’ve been here my whole life, I understand the city,” McCullough said. “With the military, I’ve had to deal with a lot of conflict issues. I’ve learned how to deal with people and different issues that come up, prioritizing issues and learning what needs to be dealt with and what needs more information, when you can take steps and when you need to step back and view the situation with new or different ideas.”

Major challenges that the future council members could face include RiverWalk.

“I need to know more about it to have an opinion,” McCullough said. “It could be good or bad. It could go either way. It depends on whether they will force people from their properties. It’s an unknown.

“I love that the Parker House [Restaurant] has been reborn for a new generation,” she added. “I don’t want it to be gone. There’s so much history there. RiverWalk is something I need to learn more about — what the plans are, who’s behind it, and how they plan to acquire the property they want.”

McCullough also wants to learn more about the Camas-Washougal community center.

“I think it sounds really good,” she said. “It would be nice to have somewhere for the kids to go, with family activities.”

McCullough is optimistic about the future of downtown Washougal.

“I’m looking forward to the dedication ceremony [of Reflection Plaza, Saturday], and seeing how Washougal accepts the new downtown and how that helps bring more life into Washougal,” she said. “We’ll have to see.”

McCullough is a member of Riverside Seventh-day Adventist, where she teaches Sabbath School for ages newborn to 3.

For additional information about McCullough, call her at 835-3234 or e-mail Jennymarie6@msn.com.

For more information about Russell, contact him at 835-3571 or jon@russellforcouncil.com. His campaign Website is www.russellforcouncil.com.