Candidate Name:
Jai Nelson
Candidate Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 928
Coeur d'Alene 83816
Email:
contact@JaiNelson.com
Website:
http://www.jainelson.com
Political Party (If partisan race):
Republican
Years of Residence in Jurisdiction:
Describe your educational background (degrees, certifications, life experiences):
Bachelor’s Degree, Department of Art & Architecture, University of Idaho. Associate of Science in Nursing, North Idaho College. Licensed Registered Nurse, Washington and Idaho.
The qualifications which are unique to my candidacy are a long history of standing up for Kootenai County and our values. These efforts are concurrent with extensive involvement concerning county issues, finances and services. Over the past several years, I have met with numerous county directors regarding their procedures and departments. This research and knowledge base will allow me to “hit the ground running” instead of spending many months simply getting up to speed.
The majority of our Commissioners’ responsibilities center on administrating the unincorporated areas of the county. As the only rural living District 2 Candidate, I will bring rural representation to the board. This will resolve many of the conflicts we currently experience between the rural citizens and our current urban living commissioners.
Describe your community involvement:
Currently, I am on the school board at Lutheran Academy of the Master. I chair the Human Resources Committee and was appointed to the Sacred Heart Medical Center Nursing Practice Council.
I have volunteered for many local organizations. The effort I am the most proud of is serving as a CASA volunteer (Court Appointed Special Advocate) advocating and representing abused children through the court system. To coin a well-used phase; It was the toughest job I ever loved. During this same period, I formed and served as the leader for a CASA support group.
Additionally, I have volunteered for Cancer & Community Charities (3 C’s), Art on the Green, KMC’s Festival Of Trees and Lake City Community Church. I am a member of the Coeur d’ Alene Chamber of Commerce, the Bellgrove Grange and Mica Flats Grange.
Describe your employment history for the past 10 years with dates.
I have been a successful Idaho business owner for over 16 years consulting with various architectural firms in the area, serving as a general contractor, construction administrator and acquired vast experiences and knowledge of architectural procedures, planning, building codes, specifications, the permit process and ordinances. This specific knowledge base has enabled me to be distinctively qualified to work with the consultant on the upcoming revisions of our implementation tools: specifically, the zoning ordinances, zoning map and subdivision ordinances.
In my role as a business owner, I have administered multi-million dollar projects and routinely made decisions in order to stay on the critical path of the schedule and within the budget. Concurrently, as a registered nurse on an Advanced Care Unit, I deal with acutely ill patients. In each of my concurrent professions, I evaluate issues based on research and facts and bring an objective, analytical approach to problem solving.
What are your three priority issues and why?
It is essential to restore and maintain a high level of trust in county government. I have campaigned on a platform to restore trust in a commission that has been accused of vacillating and making decisions based on political pressure rather than facts.
I propose to return to a citizen-based focus with a new benchmark in openness and transparency. I will place the county checkbook online in order for the expenditures pathway to be followed.
Our local economy must be a top priority and a shared responsibility as well. The citizens of Kootenai County are facing tough economic times. Therefore, I’m proposing a two-year freeze on property tax based budget increases. Any shortfall in department revenues will be funded from the $46 million in cash and investments currently held by the county.
Additionally, I’m proposing a joint venture: the Kootenai County Partnership for Economic Development to serve as a collective brainstorming effort to develop a strategy to improve, diversify and sustain our economy.
Furthermore, I would propose taking the politics out of land-use planning by going to a professional Hearing Examiner system rather than our current Commissioner-based system. I propose contracting with an outside Examiner to have land use decisions based strictly on legal standards, ordinance requirements and facts.
Effective leadership is not defined by words but by tangible actions and must be based on trust. The best measure of trust is to look at where someone has been because it’s a strong indicator of where they’re going. I have a long history of leading by action and standing up for Kootenai County and our values.
I am proud of Kootenai County, its residents and what we’ve achieved during the past several decades. We need decisive leadership and I am committed to this chief objective.
