White announces bid for County Commissioner

Kellen White, of Eureka, has announced his candidacy for Lincoln County Commissioner of the Eureka District in 2018.

While White announced his candidacy quite early, he said he felt that it was important because he feels he doesn’t have the funding and backing of the incumbent, Mike Cole.

“I feel like if I get my message out early, we can start the discussion on what we all need to do as citizens of the county to ensure the future of this beautiful place and secure the resources that we have for your kids, the future of the county,” White said in a letter to The Western News. “Every single one of us have a responsibility to leave this beautiful place in better shape than the last generation, and currently, we all have failed to carry out that responsibility.”

In his letter, White addresses the residents and parents in the county to ask themselves if the county is a great place for their children to start a family, or, White adds, are the parents and residents hoping for their children to get out of the county and make something better out of themselves.

White believes that the influx of Canadian part-time residents have taken a toll on the county and its citizens.

Especially, he said, the constant building of houses and purchasing of property by Canadians that he said has infiltrated the housing market to where “almost no local can afford to purchase or rent a house.” This, he said, has led to a change in the policy of how contractors haul heavy loads during spring breakup, leading to the “destruction and crumbling of our county road infrastructure,” White said.

The “flood of Canadian part-time residents” as White said, also generates an incredible amount of trash and waste that are being transported to the county landfill.

“One of the biggest issues that is facing Lincoln County today is making sure that the Canadian residents that are coming down here are paying their fair share,” White said.

White is an over-20 year local of Eureka, graduating from Lincoln County High School in 2009. He has been through the closing of Plum Creek, Owens & Hurst and the “general depression of our area,” as he put it, through his life.

“The Great Recession hit us Millennials harder than most Baby Boomers and Gen Xers would like to believe,” White said.

White noted the many young locals who had to move to North Dakota or Eastern Montana to find a job.

He said that the county needs to start the conversation on what kind of jobs the county wants to bring to this area — including manufacturing companies, like gun barrel manufacturers, precision parts machining, a box manufacturing facility. He also wants to look into bringing in more internet-based retailers and tech based start-ups to the county.

“By offering these types of business incentives to come and begin their business here in Lincoln County, would be a great place to start.” White wrote in the letter.

With the addition of these types of jobs, the more demand there will be for skilled workers, White said. His plan would be to advocate for county subsidized vocational training for residents of Lincoln County, that have currently or have worked in the logging or mining industry. Subsidized meaning that the county would pay some or all of the cost to train citizens.

“What better way to invest in the future of the county by investing in the future and the well being of it’s citizens?” White wrote in a letter. “With my platform, I know that we can solve these issues, along with all of the numerous other major issues that surround the future of the county, but only if we all have and keep an open mind, use common sense and think selflessly about our fellow human being and our future generations.”

White ended the letter with saying that he plans to outline his platform during the next two years with letters to the editors of the newspapers in Lincoln County, meet and greets and being available to anyone with questions, suggestions or concerns.

“We all have a responsibility...to preserve it for the next generation and to move forward into the future with progressive ideas that can work for all of the people of Lincoln County for generations to come,” White wrote at the end of the letter, “Thank you for your time Lincoln County, and I look forward to hearing and meeting you.”