Elections will be held on May 8, 2018 for Town of Lusk Government positions including a Mayor, two full term (four years) Council seats, and one two-year Council seat. It is during this pre-election time that The Lusk Herald has the opportunity to pose questions to the candidates. Please see the questions below followed by the answers of the individual candidates. The Niobrara County High School Government Class in conjunction with The Niobrara County Chamber will also be holding a Candidate Forum at the Fairgrounds April 30 at 7:00PM where community members will get a chance to ask their own questions. 

Council Member Candidates (four your term) include: Rebecca Blackburn, Dean Nelson, Calvin Carstensen, Brandie Collins, and Edward Tirado.

1. Name: Rebecca (Becky) Blackburn

2. How long have you lived in Lusk: We’ve lived here 11 years. 

3. On what platform are you running for Council? My sole purpose for being on the City Council is to serve my community and be a part of something bigger. 

4. What do you see as Lusk’s greatest asset? The people. They are the heart of this community. The response after the flood was a perfect example of that. 

5. Where do you see Lusk could improve? I think improving as a town is a constant work in progress. There are always new and difficult challenges that face a community of our demographic. By facing those challenges head on we will continue to build and become stronger. 

6. How will you work to build both Lusk’s infrastructure and economy? I have been spending time with Orion Planning, the firm working on our Comprehensive Development Plan; that plan will give us a clearer picture of how best to build our economy. I am excited to see where that leads us! Strong, stable infrastructure is essential. The Town Council and Mayor will be tasked with some big improvements in that area in the coming years. I will work to help chase money sources; whether from grants, SLIB money or other sources of funding to aid us in being able to afford these big projects. 

1.  Name: R. Dean Nelson

2.  How long have you lived in Lusk:

I have lived in Lusk since I was 4 years old; 47 years.  I went to grade school thru high school and graduated from NCHS in 1985.  I then went to Chadron State College and Eastern Wyoming College and graduated in 1989 from EWC and 1991 from CSC. I then came home and started working; got married in 1993 to Terrilou Larson and we have built a home in Lusk since then.

3.  On what platform are you running for Council?

The town’s infrastructure is very important and crucial to the longevity of the community.  Electric, sewer, water, roads, and disposal are all important to the community.  The town’s disposal has been updated; however our sewer, electrical, and roads are in constant need of repair and replacement.  Don’t get me wrong, our city crew does a wonderful job at keeping things working and the town looking nice, but we are working with an infrastructure that is old and in need of updates and repair.

4.  What do you see as a Lusk’s greatest asset?

The greatest asset that Lusk has is the people that live in Lusk and the surrounding communities.  Whenever there is someone or something in need, the community rallies together to make it work.  A community is only as good as the people living in the community and we have one of the best.  That is one of the reasons I am running for city council.  I know that I do not have the experience for the Mayors seat, but I do have the experience and knowledge to help the council and town in a vast array of decisions.

5.  Where do you see Lusk could improve?

 I feel that there is always room for improvement.  One of the things that stick’s out in my mind is the pride that people have for the care of their property.  Don’t get me wrong, I am not talking about flood properties— I know they will eventually be taken care of.  What I am talking about is the properties around our town that are in dire need of cleaning up.  I am all for personal property rights, however when your property is in a condition that it is costing your neighbors’ property value, then something needs to be done. 

6. How will you work to build both Lusk’s infrastructure and economy?

Our infrastructure in Lusk is in constant need of repair.  Through grants and budgeting I feel that we can update our struggling infrastructure.  Our town crew does a wonderful job at keeping things working smoothly, but there will be a time that they can’t keep up.  Our towns electric, sewer and streets will need more in the future than what our city crew can supply.

The economy of our community is like a teeter-totter, do the citizens of our community want growth and a jump start of the economy or do they want it to stay like it is.  To have economic growth, I feel that we would need to invite business to our community, which in turn would increase the population of our town and community.  Our community can only do so much with the economy that we are living in, which is a rural agriculture economy.  Lusk is a boom or bust society which has always centered itself around the minerals in our county.  I am all for increased economic growth, but I am not in favor of raising taxes to spur economic growth.  I feel that for a true economic growth, the money needs to come from private business ventures, which in turn would increase the economy and the population of our community.

 1. Name: Calvin Carstensen 

2. How long have you lived in Lusk: My family and I moved here in 1989.

3. On what platform are you running for Council? Community & communication 

4. What do you see as Lusk’s greatest asset? Elbow room. Lusk has ample space and hopefully, from our exposure from events such as the eclipse, people will notice that we have a nice, quieter pace of life here. I think that is a great quality of life we can hang our hat on.

5. Where do you see Lusk could improve? We need to move forward with improvements in some of our infrastructure.  Some of our sewer and water systems need to be updated in order to maintain what we have, let alone to expand and move forward. 

6. How will you work to build Lusk’s infrastructure and economy? I plan to work with those who know best of what we can do. The town council and department management must work hand in hand to realize goals set for improvement. 

I’m hoping to get real feedback from the community for economic progress.  It’s really up to the citizens as to whether they want be progressive in attracting more business in Lusk. 

1.Name: Brandie Collins

2. How long have you lived in Lusk: Since 1987.

3. On what platform are you running for Council? Economic growth and new job creation.

4. What do you see as Lusk’s greatest asset? It’s dedicated and resourceful people. 

5. Where do you see Lusk could improve? Lusk could diversify its business market.

6. How will you work to build both Lusk’s infrastructure and economy? I would use my experience in advertising and marketing to entice new businesses to come to the area. Simultaneously, I would work with existing businesses to help them grow and expand their services. I would explore different sources of revenue for the town and seek out possible grants. 

1.Name:  Edward Tirado

2.  How long have you lived in Lusk:  Over 16 years

3. On what platform are you running for Council?  Experience, I have already served on the council for a full 4-year term and I’m currently appointed to the council.    I have lobbied the state legislature for a better return of the funds we have sent to them and I understand how the funding goes from our citizens, to the state, and returns to Lusk.  I have studied how to be better as a councilman thru the Wyoming Association of Municipalities, and I’m one class from becoming a Local Government Leader.  

4. What do you see as Lusk’s greatest asset?  The people of Lusk are the town’s greatest asset.  We saw in the flood that people took the time to help their neighbors, sometimes before they helped themselves.

5. Where do you see Lusk could improve?  We need to continue to update and improve town rules and ordinances.  We need to find the funds to improve our infrastructure.   

6. How will you work to build both Lusk’s infrastructure and economy?  We need to work hard to retain the businesses that we currently have as well as actively recruit businesses that are a good fit into our community.  Understanding that all infrastructures have a life span, we need to make plans to actively repair and replace it as needed.  We must continue to search out monies to fund this necessary maintenance.