Kevin Boozel

Kevin Boozel wants to make Butler County better for the long haul.

“I truly believe that we’re going to be facing unique questions over the next four years, and we’re going to have to respond responsibly,” Boozel, 44, of Mercer Township said.

Boozel, a Democrat, is one of five candidates who are running for three county commissioner seats. The other candidates are Republicans Leslie Osche and Kim Geyer, Democrat Jerry Johnston, and Michael Bagdes-Canning of the Green Party. The election is Nov. 3.

The current commissioners — Bill McCarrier, Dale Pinkerton and Jim Eckstein — are not on the ballot.

Jobs key for countyBoozel knows there is no quick fix for the county’s issues, and one of his biggest concerns is that some people want to “cut a dime and pay a dollar later” because it looks good right now.“I’ve seen that happen, and I don’t want to see it happen anymore,” Boozel said.His top priority as commissioner would be keeping the county livable and maintaining solid employment levels.“Jobs create a lot better opportunities, such as better housing (and) education systems for our children,” Boozel said.He said his platform is “employment, housing and education.”“All three are tied together closely,” Boozel said.For education, he said supporting colleges — such as Butler County Community College — is important, but he said people need to look past college too. He said there are a lot of trades that should be looked at.“I think we’re going to have a lot of trade work that’s going to need to be done, and we need to encourage and appreciate that lifestyle — that skill — and promote it as much as college,” Boozel said.The ultimate goal is to keep young people in the county and said that jobs create the opportunity to do that.“I would have to say that job growth and business expansions are going to be key,” Boozel said.

A wide backgroundBoozel says he has a range of qualifications for the position. He said he started working at age 12 on a farm.“(That) teaches you a lot really quickly about life and earning your way,” Boozel said.He also has worked in teaching, housing and redevelopment, nonprofits and emergency services.“All of this is part of our culture in Butler County,” Boozel said. “I truly believe that all these experiences will pay off in the end.”In his job as special project director for PA 2-1-1 Southwest, an information hub that connects people with services, Boozel said he works in 28 counties and deals with their governments.“I work a lot with county commissioners anyway,” Boozel said. “I think its really going to pay off for Butler County to have that networking already started.”

Focusing on growthHandling and promoting economic growth will be important.“Butler County is blessed with growth,” Boozel said.He said the commissioners will need to pay attention to the whole county and the needs of each region.“We can’t develop the entire county at once,” Boozel said.He said commissioners need to be responsible in managing growth, and consider needs and infrastructure. He said commissioners need to work with municipalities in that development.As far as improving transportation, he noted that people can get to Pittsburgh from Lawrence County via bus.“We don’t have that,” Boozel said.He said he is trying to make sure that the county’s voice is heard at Southwest Pennsylvania Commission meetings — where road and transportation projects are discussed. He is a member of the steering committee of that commission.

Opposes tax increaseWhile attending county budget meetings over the past month, Boozel said he learned a lot.“What I learned is that the current style of government — not just in Butler, but in general — is that we have to spend it or we don’t get it this year,” Boozel said. “It’s not wasted, but it’s just not thoughtful money. I think that’s something that we can take a look at.”He said the commissioners need to be more hands on with the budget, looking at the difference between what is requested and what is spent.As far as increasing taxes, he said that would be a “100 percent” last resort.“I’m not about to raise taxes,” Boozel said. “I will do everything I can to beat that back. Once you have an increase in taxes, they never give it back.”

Radio system a concernWith an emergency services background, Boozel is well versed in the issue surrounding the possibly $13-million, government-mandate 911 radio system upgrade.He said he is working with people in Harrisburg to see if the issue can be explored further, if there is anything else the county can do.He said the county has four options now, and they are all expensive.“But, we’re not on a deadline of 2016,” Boozel said. “We have deadlines of 2018, 2021 and 2022.”He said the end of life for the current county radio system is 2018. He said the system will still work, but the manufacturer will quit making replacement parts.He said the county should start building the infrastructure for a new radio system now and keep building it out gradually so the deadlines can be met.“I think that by doing that thoughtfully, we won’t have to go after bonds, we won’t have to go after taxes, we won’t have to do any of that,” Boozel said.Boozel said he recently visited the Sunnyview Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, which the county sold in 2014, and said seniors are being served well there.As far as county senior centers, which had their hours reduced this year, he said seniors want to be in the loop about changes.“Are we serving them as well as we could be? I think we can always do better,” Boozel said.

Visiting departmentsHe has been visiting county departments and meeting with their directors. He said many staff members said they have not seen county commissioners stopping by much.“I want to change that,” Boozel said, saying he wants departments to be comfortable with the commissioners.He said he has less connection with the prison than any other county departments, so he wants to learn more about how it works. However, he said he does not want to spend a lot of extra time focusing on specific departments, saying that all are essential and worthy of a commissioner’s time.Getting along with others as a commissioner will be important, he said.“It’s absolutely about relationship building,” Boozel said.He said his background lends itself to being cooperative, but firm enough to back up his opinion. He said he believes the commissioners can have disagreements, but be on good terms at the end of the day.“That’s going to be important for the next day because if it deteriorates, it’s going to be hard to rebuild,” Boozel said.With three new commissioners, he said there’s fertile ground for responsible change.“I’m ecstatic,” Boozel said about serving.He said he is able to work with all four of the other candidates. He does not see meetings being as combative as they have been the past four years.“I think we are going to learn together. We all have experience in the community,” Boozel said.