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, Candace (CJ) Hathaway, Sandy Jacobs, 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: 39
Occupation: Plumber for Auman Company
Why are you running for Hays City Commission?
I was born in Hays, raised in my youth in the foster care system, and have lived here the better part of my life after living on both coasts. I'm a former youth advocate and mentor for the Western Kansas Child Advocacy Center and taught a class on resiliency.
I was nudged by others into running for city commission because of my background, my connections to the blue-collar community in Hays and how outspoken I am on issues I feel passionately about.
As a new candidate, do you have any relevant/political experience?
This is my first step into the political sphere. The reason I'm running is so that people like me have a voice on the commission as someone who can argue points for the blue-collar people like myself, the working class.
What is the most pressing issue(s) the city of Hays faces?
I think our most existential crisis right now is water.
With the R9 project that we've been gunning for for decades now, I know that's our best chance at having sustainable water for the future.
When I first started digging into things, I was turned off by that because it seems like we're just taking water from another community that's just as drought-stricken as we are, if not more so.
But, unfortunately, I don't see a better option for our community, especially at the rate that we're growing and the rate we're trying to grow.
A desalination project would require a multi-million dollar facility just to get a city's worth of usable water from that resource.
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?
Maybe not offer free land, but maybe some sort of land bank with some of the properties that have been foreclosed upon, some of the properties that have been sitting vacant for a long time.
I think some sort of land bank project might be beneficial to the community for actual affordable housing for the working class.
We need to just get back to the basics and look out for the community as a whole and not just try to bring in upper-middle class people with these new developments we're putting up.
If that means slowing down on the growth, I'm all for that.
These people who are making well below the wages needed for these new developments. ... I feel they're getting left behind and a lot of times, priced out of the area. That's not just the young families, not just the working class, but also the elderly who have devoted their lives to this city.
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?
No, I think we should do everything we can to keep the mill levy as low as we can, if not continue to lower it if possible.
The governing body of Hays chose to remain revenue neutral for the budget year 2026.
If that means cutting some fluff, cutting some things that don't benefit the bulk of the community, then so be it.
I know this may not be the direction a lot of the people in power want to see things going, but I think if we are at such a tight spot financially, then maybe we should look at tightening our belts a little bit.
Are there areas in the city budget or departments that can be streamlined? What would you change in the city's current operations?
One of the things that is at the top of my mind is upkeep on the bike lanes. I think if we cut upkeep on the bike lanes and let those phase out, that cuts fluff that doesn't really benefit the bulk of our community.
I, and other people I speak with, hardly ever see anyone using them. If you do, it's maybe one a day here and there, maybe an annual bike event.
I think another thing might be reaching out for the consultant-driven studies—vision plans and marketing studies—usually end up recycling the same information and eating up tens of thousands of dollars with no direct benefit.
I'd say on these, perhaps we should put them on hold unless they're tied to a grant.
If we have consultant-driven studies that are necessary and connected to a grant, that might be something we should look into.
If it's something that may not directly benefit the community, then I feel it's something we may not have the money for right now. We should step back and get our checkbook back in order.
I feel like we have a great resource here with our college. We have a whole lot of very intelligent people in our community that we could maybe reach out to and work with.
Should each city park become more "individualized," offering different/fewer amenities at each location to save maintenance costs?
I do like the idea of seeing what all equipment is being used in each different park. If some equipment sits unused quite often, then maybe pull that, unless there's a demand for it, and then maybe put it back.
But I feel like all the different parks in the area serve different groups in the area. All the parks have their own neighborhoods and the children who use the equipment.
The parks are a really tough one for me because I grew up a block away from Massey Park where I played and used everything there, including the baseball field, even using it as a soccer field.
When I was a kid, we didn't have restrooms at all the parks. I know it's very beneficial to have those now. But I know at Massey Park, the bathrooms have caused issues with kids there getting involved in activities they shouldn't be. Sometimes, even abuse can happen to them because of the privatized lock structure like that.
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've dug into quite a bit as I've been learning about all the roles and responsibilities of the city commission. This is not something I've devoted a lot of time to yet.
I know that Hays benefits from the ACCESS van. I see it going around every day. It's definitely something we need.
Could it be something like Salina has with a free bus system? I don't know that we're quite large enough to sustain something like that.
Anything else you'd like to add?
I'm for smart growth, for sustainable growth.
I feel like maybe we grew too big for our britches already. We don't even have sustainable water in place yet, not just for planned growth, but also not for our current population.
I think a lot of people love Hays because of its small-town charm. I'm afraid if we focus on growth above everything else, we might lose that.
I just fear that we're just so worried about trying to keep up with other cities that we're not focusing on what's made us an All-America City from the start.
As told to Becky Kiser/Hays Post