Sean C. Morgan
Of The New Era
Rich Rowley believes the city should maintain a supportive role in the effort to revitalize the downtown.
During the council’s “forward strategic session” earlier this year, one of the things members discussed and agreed on was that the “City Council cannot legislate the improvements that need to occur to revitalize the downtown,” he said, but it can support the effort.
“I think, for the most part, the city’s focused the way it should be,” he said. The council works cooperatively, within the boundaries of the decisions that it makes.
“People aren’t always in agreement,” he said, but when a decision is made, the council pulls together and supports it.”
He said one thing Sweet Home must face is the need for upgrades to its infrastructure.
“The new water treatment plant is under construction, but the city needs to continue replacing sewer lines and laterals and at some point, upgrading the wastewater treatment plant.
At the same time, streets around the city aren’t fully improved or improved at all, he said.
“I would like to see a (plan) to start doing something in this regards.”
The Public Works director is looking at a plan to bring some of those streets up to a basic standard, with tougher surfaces that won’t deteriorate, identifying areas to strategically fund those projects.
The city is growing, and it’s beautiful with a variety of activities available, including fishing, the lake, hunting, biking and hiking, he said. It’s the type of place young professionals would want to live.
The challenge is the city’s location away from the freeway and the type of industry Sweet Home might be able to draw, he said. He would like to provide “essentially a tax incentive” to area companies that allow employees to telecommute rather than physically travel to work.
It saves wear and tear on the roads, gasoline and time as well as being environmentally friendly, he said. It provides the opportunity for technology-oriented professionals to live in a place like Sweet Home.
Tax incentives would be offset by corresponding savings in public budgets for tangible savings in road repairs or environmental situations, he said. “Of course, no state office likes to have a budget cut.”
Rowley is most concerned with quality of life, supporting efforts to improve it, he said. “We need to be able to improve the living environment for our families.”
That’s one of the reasons he opposed the ordinance permitting Texas Hold ‘Em tournaments at local commercial establishments, perhaps the most controversial issue to come before the council over the last two years.
“I’m opposed to legalized gambling,” he said. “I don’t find it conducive to” the quality of life environment for families.
Those who can handle gambling are outweighed by those who cannot, he said. Gambling destroys families, Rowley added.
“Ultimately, it does not contribute to quality of living in the community,” he said.
His budget priorities are public safety as well as the basics such as providing good drinking water, he said.
“I think libraries are important. I’d like to see us come up with ways to keep the library open and working. I was favorably disposed toward the library district. Those folks there have done an awful lot with little funds.”
In a budget crunch, city staff look at what is optional, “things we need to have done but don’t have to have done right away,” he said. That’s where budget cuts go.
Police services are essential and a priority, he said. When he became a councilor, the council was receiving complaints about a lack of traffic control while resources were fully occupied dealing with crime.
Since then, the department has been able to begin a traffic program, and that “contributes to the overall quality of life,” he said. The addition of a school resource officer also appears to be successful.
Those may seem like areas to cut in a budget crunch, but the city needs to be careful about that, he said.
“You should vote for me if you feel the values I have are consistent with yours,” Rowley said. He considers issues dispassionately around the idea of quality of life. Some issues are more fundamental.
Some politicians stick their fingers in the wind and vote accordingly, he said. That’s “representation,” and he doesn’t support that.
“If people look at the majority and then decide, you’re not going to get good decisions,” he said. They’ll be popular, but that doesn’t make them good. The next day, the decision may not even be popular.
Rather, he presents a set of values, and if voters support them, then he suggest voting for him.
Rowley, 55, is married to Debie. They have three children, Justin, 25; Craig, 27; and Tim, 29. They have one grandchild, Jordyn, and another on the way.
Rowley’s wife is a Sweet Home native. He was born and raised in Utah, graduating from Bountiful High School and then the University of Utah with a bachelor of science degree in computer science.
He moved to Sweet Home in 1994 after living in Corvallis where he settled 30 years ago with his wife to work for Summit Information Systems, now a division of Fiserv, a Fortune 500 company, as a computer programmer. He writes software for credit unions.
He was appointed to the city council approximately two years ago to fill a vacancy left by Jessica Coward. This is his first election. He served previously on the Planning Commission for 11 years, a tenure second only to Chairman Dick Meyers who is going on 36 years, a statewide record.
“I got involved in this through a political discussion with someone (his wife’s aunt),” he said. She is politically diametrically opposed to some of his political views, and the discussions with her prompted him to join the Planning Commission.
He also served for six years on the Sweet Home Economic Development Group Board of Directors, including three as board secretary.