The recent news that Betsy Wallace is withdrawing from the Park City Council race is regrettable. She was a well-qualified candidate who is passionate about Park City, and would have brought unique and compelling perspectives to the council. With her corporate training and financial acumen, she would have served us well by questioning politics and processes, holding City Hall accountable, and ensuring greater transparency. These are all qualities that are crucial to helping Park City be the best it can be, serving the current and evolving needs of our community, and addressing some of the very complex issues before us.
Indeed, life can become quite “unbalanced” when running for public office. I have felt that acutely myself. It is challenging to discuss ideas, big and small, as there are those whose minds are made up and decline to have a reasonable dialogue. These are conversations we must have.
Thankfully, I have found that more and more Parkites are looking for new and bold ideas to long-standing and complex problems, knowing that the potential answers are neither simple nor easy, and are dependent upon a complex web of consensus among multiple stakeholders.
To this end, I will remain focused on policies, and not politics, and will dialogue exhaustively with as many as humanly possible. We must collaborate around ideas and not identities in order to ensure a brighter future. Together we can do better.
I hope Betsy remains as engaged in Park City as she always has. Her energy, enthusiasm, passion and ideas will be deeply missed by all of us in this election.
Bill Ciraco, Park City Council candidate
Park City