Dooley, Crist unopposed for council seats

The Greybull Town Council race features two incumbents in Chris Dooley and Gerald Crist, both of whom are seeking new four-year terms in Tuesday’s general election.

The newspaper sent Q&As to both candidates.  Only Dooley responded.  To help voters, we are reprinting Crist’s responses to the first two questions that he submitted prior to the primary.

Chris Dooley

Background: I was born and raised in Greybull, then moved to Shell for 22 years after college. My wife and I moved back to Greybull in 2018. I have been employed at Stilyard Enterprises and have been making shop drawings for steel fabricators for the last 29 years. I have been married to my wife Kandice for 28 years. We have one daughter, Bree, and son-in-law TJ Lundberg and their 1-year-old daughter Teagan, and one son Cade. I have been on numerous boards and committees over the years and have been on town council going on four years

Gerald Crist

Background: Debbie and I continue to reside in the same Greybull home we purchased in 1980, where we raised our three children. While Debbie still works part time as a speech therapist, I retired three years ago after a long career in heavy construction. Since retirement I have been involved as a Greybull Museum board member and volunteer, active member and treasurer for Big Horn County Citizens for Economic Development, and for the last 18 months as a Greybull Town Council member.

Q&A

Why are you running for office?

Dooley:   I ran for council initially just wanting help the community I grew up in. Seeking re-election is tough because there is a lot to the job. No matter what, decisions you make are going to impact residents’ lives either positively or negatively, depending on the point of view.  I have learned a lot in the past four years, and want to continue to try and make a positive impact.

Crist: I am running for town council simply because there are so many things yet to be done to improve our quality of life in Greybull. So yes, it does feel like I am (running) to help initiate and accomplish the many goals and projects that the citizens of our community, town staff, and council members have identified and prioritized in the soon to be completed capital improvement projects survey. 

 

Some concerns have been voiced publicly about the general appearance of the town. For example, that the town is struggling to keep up with its park maintenance and not doing enough to enforce its weed ordinance, etc.  Also, there is frustration about the potholes, particularly on Railroad Avenue.  Do you agree?  What can be done to address some of these issues?  

Dooley: Weeds are a problem that will obviously never go away. This was a bad year for them, I know I had trouble keeping them at bay at my own house. They are tied to park maintenance along with a never ending list of issues at the baseball fields. Those fields are in one of the worst places possible when it comes to keeping them up. Poor soil conditions (gravel), heat, and winds make keeping the grass green difficult, and keeps the weeds coming back. There is also sprinkler systems that seem to need constant attention. If you drive by the fields, steps are being taken to make improvements. My feeling on the weeds is they are a lower priority, it is more important to keep fresh water coming to town and waste water having somewhere to go. That may mean having to play catch up on them unfortunately.  Sure everybody wants town to look pristine, but there has to be give and take at times. As for 7th street (Railroad Ave), that street does not belong to the town, so it presents unique problems. Reaching out to the railroad has proven difficult at best, and that street wasn’t intended for the current traffic it sees. Constant passenger vehicles to heavy trucks, and very poor drainage all take their toll. As we work to find a long term solution, patching and partial replacement are being used. Streets will always need something. They are cut when utilities need worked on, soft spots start to crumble, frost heaves show up in the spring, Wyoming is hard on infrastructure. 

The last 5-10 years have seen the building of the pool, development of the business park and housing subdivision and replacement of key infrastructure.  What’s the next big need for the town?  What do we need to start thinking about now so that we are ready for it when it’s needed? 

Dooley: The water line coming into town from Shell and the east water tank are the next items being addressed. Breaks caused some water conservation to be taken at times this summer. There are many steps that have to be taken to get projects like these going so it will be a topic for the coming years. Housing is STILL a concern of mine even with the Frontier Subdivision selling lots. Over the years it keeps being brought up that we need more industry and business brought to town. I don’t feel we have enough employable people here as it is, much less room to house them. I think the push needs to be supporting and shopping our local start ups and established businesses, allowing them to hire with competitive wages and benefits to entice long term employees. The first step in that process was having the area entrepreneurs and business leaders take the reins of the Chamber of Commerce. I am looking forward to their collective accomplishments.

 

 

 

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