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. 

Mayor Candidates include: Douglas Lytle, Pete Pier, and Thomas Bleming. 

1. Name: Douglas Lytle

2. How long have you lived in Lusk: I moved to Lusk in 1989 and graduated from NCHS in 1993. College and other life endeavors moved me around this great country, but I have always considered Lusk my home. My wife, Kayte, and I moved back to Lusk in 2012 to raise our family in this great community that we both grew up in. All in all I guess about 29 years.

3. On what platform are you running for Mayor? The platform that I am running on is “Continuing Excellence!” We have a community that I am proud to be a part of. I would like to see this community continually improve and grow. We have great assets in our community. We also have some issues that need addressed, but there also has to be funding to address some of the issues.

4. If elected, what is one of the first tasks you hope to accomplish? If elected the first task I hope to accomplish is working with the Town Council, Public Works Director, City Clerk and Water and Sewer department to come up with a plan and funding for the improvement of our sewer system. They are doing the best they can right now, but we need a comprehensive plan to move forward and get the funding in place to fix our sewers.

5. What do you see as Lusk’s greatest asset? Without a doubt in my mind, Lusk’s greatest asset is its people. Seeing this community support one another, on a day to day basis, is one of the biggest reasons I am proud to call Lusk home. From the day I moved to Lusk, I recognized the community has always taken care of one another.

6. Where do you see Lusk could improve? Every community has places they can improve. We have to find a way to retain some of the younger generation. We have job opportunities in town, but people that move here sometimes get bored with just going to work and going home. We, as a community,  have to find a way to get newcomers involved. To be involved in this community gives a person some ownership and a level of pride to continue to help make this community even better than it is now. We also need to find ways to clean up some areas in our town that have fallen into disarray. This may be by writing new or changing ordinances. It also means that we need to stand behind the people who are charged with enforcing these ordinances.   

7. As Mayor, how will you promote Lusk to build the local economy? To help promote the economy in Lusk can be tricky. We are a community of people that have good work ethics, strong moral values and a wide variety of skills. To be able to take advantage of these types of assets we have to improve some of our infrastructure to entice businesses into the community. Housing is still an issue in Lusk and has been for some time. Technology in the community plays a huge part in businesses locating in the area. Having activities for business employees to do outside of the work environment is critical in keeping those employees from leaving once they are here. This is not only for new business, but also existing business.

8. As Mayor, how will you build on the town’s infrastructure? To build on the town’s infrastructure there needs to be funding. I think our Town of Lusk employees do a great job with what we are able to give them through their budgets.  I would continue to let the Town of Lusk employees keep doing the same excellent job they have done for years. My job would be to work with the Council and other town’s people and come up with new ideas and funding to keep improving on what we have.

9. If any, have you ever had any involvement/experience in town or city government and to what capacity? I have served on the Town Council for the last two years and was a Police Officer for the town for approximately three years.

10. What qualifies you to be the Mayor of Lusk? I believe I am qualified for Mayor of Lusk for many reasons. The first reason is that I am willing to listen to what people have to say. In last five years my phone has been open to all callers. I also believe I am qualified because I know I cannot do the job on my own. I have to depend on the other Council members by keeping them informed of what is happening and also letting them be in on the decision making process.  I believe I am qualified because I already have a good working relationship with most of the city crew and others within the municipality. People have asked me if I plan on making any changes to the departments. To that I say “If it isn’t broke then there is no need to fix it.” I am willing to give my advice and also look for advice when needed. I may not see eye to eye with everyone, but I do know that all decisions that will be made will be in the best interests of the community.  I will stand behind all of the decisions that are made by the Council and myself. I have been involved with many teams in the past. The more Lusk City Government works as a team the better success we will have as a community.   

1. Name: Pete Pier

2. How long have you lived in Lusk: I moved to Lusk 19 years ago as of April 3, 2018.

3. On what platform are you running for Mayor? A platform can be difficult to define. I clearly want to continue the same level of success this town enjoys today.  We all try to do the best every day but we can always do more for our community.

4. If elected, what is one of the first tasks you hope to accomplish? I want to continue the good relationship between the mayor and council with the employees. Continuity is important. I want our entire council to focus on making sure every taxpayer penny is spent well. In times of a decreased revenue stream we all need to make sure we can justify the large amount we spend annually on operating a small community. 

5. What do you see as Lusk’s greatest asset? I think Lusk has the same qualities as a lot of small towns in rural America. We have citizens who support each other and the determination to strive and survive regardless of whatever we are faced with.  

6. Where do you see Lusk could improve? Lusk could improve with some of the services we offer. The last few years we have watched the cost of service rise but the level of service decline. Anytime you ask the consumer to pay more you better provide the same level of service or more. Sanitation is an example. We have watched our rates increase substantially but the service decline. There is no reason we can’t offer some simple services. When I questioned the leadership as to why we had to accept lower service... not a single response. We deserve better.

7. As Mayor, how will you promote Lusk to build the local economy? We need to support the local economy that we have. Every penny spent here is so valuable. We see the same challenge every small community has with out of town and online revenue lost. Economic development is critical. Every small town strives for more business. This is no easy issue with one solution.

8. As Mayor, how will you build on the town’s infrastructure? Infrastructure is a concern of mine. The electric system has seen major upgrade over the years. The rest of the system, has seen almost no upgrades. As taxpayers we have spent a lot of money for improvements the last eight years, but almost nothing has been done on the systems that we need daily to sustain modern living standards. We need the 1% sales tax option for projects just like these. We can’t do these multimillion dollar projects without help. We can’t set back much longer and just go on hoping it will last another generation.

9. If any, have you ever had any involvement/experience in town or city government and to what capacity? I was elected to the town council in 2000. I left that position to take the position of county coroner in 2002. In 2004 I ran successfully for the position of mayor. I held that position until 2010. I currently hold the county coroner position. I have demonstrated I can lead a town, as well as operate two small business in Lusk.

10. What qualifies you to be the Mayor of Lusk? I have the experience and the knowledge. We all want to succeed and it starts from the top down. You need the desire to want to be the voice of the community.  You have to have the ability to make the right decision. Few of us want an elected job. When asking for the job you better be ready to make decisions that impact us in the community. That can be tough at times. I have proved I can make those decisions.

1. Name: Thomas Bleming

2. How long have you lived in Lusk: I moved here in 1995.

3. On what platform are you running for Mayor? Community relations.

4. If elected, what is one of the first tasks you hope to accomplish?  Appoint a new chief of police.

5. What do you see as Lusk’s greatest asset? Educational system (K-12).

6. Where do you see Lusk could improve? Attracting more commerce and creating more jobs.

7. As Mayor, how will you promote Lusk to build the local economy?  Lusk should have its own website.

8. As Mayor, how will you build on the town’s infrastructure?  We need a waste treatment plant.

9. If any, have you ever had any involvement/experience in town or city government and to what capacity?  Not in city government.

10. What qualifies you to be the Mayor of Lusk? My military service and life experience.