During a debate Tuesday at the Boone County Public Library, contenders for the county's judge/executive position made their pitches to primary voters: seasoned experience or new energy for a quickly-shifting region?
Despite its name, the judge/executive position isn't a judicial role. Instead, think of it like the county's chief executive, responsible for overseeing its budget and administration.
Current Boone County Judge/Executive Gary Moore has held the seat since 1998. Boone County Commissioner Chet Hand is challenging him.
Moore highlighted his long tenure and steady approach while Hand made the case the county is rapidly changing and needs a new approach. Both touted fiscal and social conservative bone-fides in the majority-Republican county.
Moore began his remarks by touting his ability to get things done while pointing out the county's high fiscal ratings and other measures of financial stability.
"We've reduced property tax rates during my tenure by nearly 25 percent," he said. "Yet we've delivered strong, reliable services while doing that. And I've never levied a new tax of any kind."
Hand, meanwhile, painted a picture of a county in flux that needs new perspectives to deal with issues it hasn't faced before.
"I recognize that we're at a critical time for our county," he said. "We've gained almost 100,000 people in the past three decades, with growth driving challenges in housing, traffic and development. The reality is we're a different county than we were 30 years ago — or even 10 years ago."
The candidates on housing and development
Moderator Evan Millward asked both candidates what they would do to address those challenges. Hand said the county needs to better define its development goals via its comprehensive plan, attract more high-paying jobs and provide tax relief for current residents.
"I get calls almost every week from residents who have been here for a long time in Boone County who say they are being forced out for a variety of reasons, either for quality-of-life concerns or taxation or traffic," he said. "They're being forced to leave our county. To me that's unacceptable."
Moore said his administration has taken a careful but thorough approach to problems like traffic congestion and housing shortages in the county.
"We wanted to make data-informed decisions," he said, touting work he's done on the region's housing inventory and a fund to kick start housing development. "Today, the next steps are auxiliary dwelling units, reducing lot sizes — because the land costs are a big challenge with this — and some of those other things."
Hand agreed reducing lot sizes in undeveloped parts of the county could help, but said executing a specific comprehensive plan is key to solving housing, commercial development and transportation issues. He pointed out approval for four hotels along the county's Frogtown Connector despite prohibition of that kind of development for the road in the county's comprehensive plan.
"It comes down to strategic vision and strategic planning," he said. "I know that there will probably be reference that we do have a plan and we follow the plan, but we absolutely do not."
The candidates on addressing homelessness
One area that illustrated a clear contrast between the candidates was a question about what the county's judge/executive can do to address the issue of homelessness.
Moore highlighted the county's partnership with Welcome House, a Covington-based nonprofit that works with people who are unhoused in rural parts of Boone County. He said the collaboration takes a holistic approach to try and address the roots of homelessness with a number of wrap-around services provided by social workers.
"Many times, it's needing job training or re-training," he said. "Maybe it's needing mental health counseling and sometimes prescription benefits."
Hand, meanwhile, stressed a back-to-basics approach designed to limit taxpayer expense. He mentioned an effort he engaged in with other county commissioners to pare back a proposed shelter for people without homes being built in the county.
"It was the Taj Mahal of homeless shelters," he said. "Myself and the other commissioners were pretty adamant in like, 'Look, we're not really interested in a ginormous taxpayer-subsidized program. We are interested in making sure we take care of their safety.' "
You can watch the full debate on Facebook.
Boone County voters will likely be choosing who serves next in the role in Kentucky's May 19 primary. The winner of two contenders for the GOP's nomination will likely go on to run unopposed in the November general election.
Read more: