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Dan Tackett
Special to The Courier
Last Saturday, I offered praise to Lincoln voters who produced a healthy turnout in the city’s consolidated election. Naturally, I also congratulated the winners, mayor-elect Tracy Welch and Wanda Lee Rohlfs, who will represent Ward 3 on the city council.
But I also signaled out Rohlfs’ opponent, Aimee Bulthuis Galvin, who lost by a 22-vote margin. An Independent, Galvin based her campaign on promoting local tourism and addressing issues with affordable housing, empty lots and revitalization of dilapidated properties.
The latter, referring to parts of our town that seem to be crumbling right before our eyes, is an issue the city council has pretty much ignored. I’m unsure why demolishing or fixing up these properties has not been addressed by aldermen, but I suspect the legal mine field the city might have to navigate in doing so keeps City Hall from venturing into this mess.
Low voter turnout is shameful
Dan Tackett
It surely seems I’ve been down this road before, but here I go once again. And I’m still as puzzled as I was on previous trips.
The central focus here is voter turnout. Actually, it’s all about the lack of voter turnout when it comes to citizen decision-making when it comes to choosing leaders for the city of Lincoln. What prompts this voyage down this familiar passage are the numbers registered this week in the city’s Republican primary election for mayor and in one ward for nomination to run for an aldermanic seat.