The six candidates for Hays City Commission were interviewed by the Hays Post. Their responses are being presented in a question-and-answer format. The other candidates running include Samuel Allen, Reese Barrick, Sandy Jacobs, David Koshiol, Shaun Musil and David Vilaysing.
Allen did not respond to Hays Post's request for an interview. Allen was arrested on a charge of alleged blackmail in July.
Also listed on the ballot but not pursuing office are Kelly Ancar and Justin Choitz.
Three seats are available on the board. The two candidates with the highest number of votes will each receive a four-year term. The third-highest candidate will serve a two-year term. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 4.
Age: 41
Occupation: Remote worker for InvoiceCloud based in Boston as a project program manager for higher education and technology companies
Why are you running for Hays City Commission?
I grew up in Hays, graduated from K-State and moved to Boston where I met my husband. About a year ago, we decided to move back to Hays to be closer to family and enjoy the slower pace of living.
I wanted to re-engage myself with the community, and I think giving back is important. I fully understand I haven't been here in a long time, and I'm very focused on listening to the folks who live here and understanding their perspective, bringing those viewpoints into the role of a city commissioner.
As a new candidate, do you have any relevant/political experience?
I served as vice president of the Framingham Centre Nursery School board in Massachusetts, which further developed my abilities in community-focused decision-making and advocacy.
At Hays High, I was involved in FFA and was drum major for the band.
In my job, I spend a lot of time working with large groups and managing large budgets and projects.
What is the most pressing issue(s) the city of Hays faces?
One of them is our infrastructure and planning, especially around things like water. Making sure we have enough water is essential and key to everything we do.
I also think we have a lot of work to do around housing. Do we have enough and in the right mix for people?
Are we taking care of our health care landscape? Do we have accessible health care, including good mental health services? Fortunately, in Hays, we do have organizations that make sure things like that are supported, can grow and be accessed.
It's been suggested by a local developer that the city provide free land for construction of new homes costing $150,00 or less. What are your thoughts about housing in Hays?
There are a lot of things that go into housing for low-income or unhoused folks. Providing free land could certainly be a piece of that.
I think it's a two-way street between the community sharing ideas like that and the city commission hearing them, understanding what's possible and sharing their ideas back with the community.
I want to create an environment where people feel like they can be a part of the solution.
The city narrowly avoided a 2-mill levy increase in the 2026 budget. How would you keep the mill levy at 25 mills? Should it instead be increased?
It's always a challenge. How much do we fund our community? How much do we pay as citizens in our taxes to fund the things that we use every day? No one likes to pay a huge amount of money in taxes, but I also think the things that we fund are incredibly important.
Whether it's the airport or something else we should be funding, I'm sure there are times when the mill levy will have to be raised a little bit. That's just the reality of how things go. I think it's something voters should have a say in, and we can decide as a community what is important, what is essential.
Budgets should be managed responsibly and carefully, appropriately and effectively as possible. I think our city employees do a good job of managing their budgets.
The governing body of Hays chose to remain revenue neutral for the budget year 2026.
Are there areas in the city budget or departments that can be streamlined? What would you change in the city's current operations?
In general, I think our city employees have their best interests at heart for the city of Hays, want to serve their community and to do the right thing for the neighbors they live next to.
To save money, sometimes you spend a little money. Do employees need additional training for new roles? We have an explosion of AI technology. Are there ways we can optimize relationships with platforms and vendors? Are there additional tools or resources the employees need to make them more efficient or make our community better?
Should each city park become more "individualized," offering different/fewer amenities at each location to save maintenance costs?
It's certainly worth looking at. There's a lot of research that shows everyone needs outdoor time—fresh air, sunshine and exercise.
It's nice to have bathrooms in our parks. Each park is unique, but each has what we need, and I think that's important.
There are organizations in town that have stepped up to sponsor or take care of them.
Part of it is our community involvement. I've been places where we've done a lot more community clean-up days, helping paint parks, helping repair broken playground equipment, things like that. There are regulations around that, and you have to be careful, but it's one of the things we can look at.
I don't love the idea of some parks perhaps getting special treatment because I think every park in every neighborhood is special. I want to make sure we have a fair and equitable distribution of the joys that our parks bring.
Should the city get involved in the operation of the public transportation program ACCESS, which is struggling with its funding? Should the city offer greater financial support?
I spent a lot of time using public transportation in Boston, one of the first U.S. cities to have public transportation. I'm a big believer and big user of public transportation.
It's important that we make our city multi-functional. If you don't have a car, it can be difficult to get to where you need to go.
Walkable cities and neighborhoods are important as well. Looking at ways to expand walkability, making sure our bike paths and lanes are accessible, and their use is encouraged, is part of public transportation.
I would hate to see the ACCESS vans go away. That service is key, even if it's a more set schedule that runs, which is not quite as flexible as anytime, anywhere.
Building up the opportunities for having more rideshares, or having neighbors build a community where they can give rides to each other, is also really key.
Anything else you'd like to add?
I'm really interested in learning what's happening in Hays. I'm not just asking for people's votes. I really want their partnership.
I want to help in understanding what's working, what's not working, where can we keep investing, where should we be dialing back, where should we be shifting. That really comes from the people living in the community.
This is where people choose to live and stay. If you're invested in it and have a stake in the game, that makes a huge difference.
Community is not something you get passively. You have to be involved if you want something to get better or something to stay good.
As told to Becky Kiser/Hays Post