QUESTION: What are the reasons you are running for county commissioner?

TRAINOR: I'm a lifelong resident of Butler and I've seen it go through a lot of changes; some good, some bad.

But I think that someone like me with kind of a world of experience and fresh perspective would be good to interject their ideas in the county.

I've tried for years to convey some of those ideas and it seems like it hasn't gone anywhere, so I figured what better way than to throw my hat into the ring.

QUESTION:What services should Butler County provide its senior citizens? Should its 10 senior centers remain open or should some or all be closed or consolidated?

TRAINOR: I have no problem with the idea of consolidation.

I think certainly when you look at budgetary constraints, especially in this day and age, it's important to look at what is feasible. I think we need to do a study. There needs to be concrete evidence on what the expenses are versus what the benefits are for the seniors, and they need to be brought in on the conversation, too.

We see things from different people on what works and what doesn't, but I think we really need to reach out to all of them and see what they're looking for because maybe they're in favor of consolidation. You never know until you really ask them.

But I think there needs to be a strong study that really looks at, “OK, if we do close them, what are the alternatives” or “how are they going to get there and what's that going to cost us,” and then let's weigh it out.

QUESTION:What is your view about the county budget? Should revenue increase to meet rising costs or should expenses be cut? Explain your specific proposals.

TRAINOR: I definitely don't think that we need to raise revenues, necessarily. I always think there is room to cut out. I mean, that's my experience; I worked in federal budgets, and there's always fat you can trim. It's never the easiest thing, but if everyone gets together to cut out the little things, it really adds up.

I think our county does one of the best jobs of maintaining and sticking to the budget that they set.

So I don't think there's a ton of room for improvement, but little things will go a long way. And I don't think there's one particular department that's at fault over others.

I think what we were able to do with Sunnyview was a big move for the county. Thankfully, that's already done and we're able to move forward with small tweaks to push us ahead.

QUESTION:How much should the county commissioners and county residents be allowed to talk at commissioners meetings?

TRAINOR: I think from the commissioners standpoint, they need to be able to address as much as they need to get their point across. It's important that we elect them to be in a role to lead the county, so they need to convey their thoughts down to us.

In turn, when citizens have concerns, they need to have that forum. We certainly don't want to drag things on more than they need to be, so maybe there needs to be separate forums other than the meetings themselves for the citizens to approach and have all the commissioners in a central location to do that. But I don't think there should be very many constraints, if at all, on the length.

QUESTION: Explain what you think should be the role of the county commissioners in their oversight of county agencies such as the county housing and redevelopment authority, the county industrial authority, tourism bureau, the planning commission?

TRAINOR: I am all in favor of, whether it be an agency or municipality, maintaining the laws and the rules within themselves and being able to self govern.

But I think the commissioners need to have an integral part of acting with them together to make sure that their mission is being fulfilled to meet the countywide mission so that we're not overstepping ourselves.

So I think there needs to be an open dialogue between the agencies and the commissioners. Maybe not a rule-over type of position, but just have an open communication and make sure everything is working in line with what the bigger picture is for the county.

QUESTION: What role do you think the county commissioners should have in economic development in the county?

TRAINOR: I think this is really the biggest part of the commissioners role right now, because we have changed so much and we're constantly growing, and we will continue to grow as long as things are done to keep it in place.

I think the CDC group does a great job of doing this, and I know the commissioners have a role with that, but I'd like to see them take a little bit of a bigger role with that in economic development.

Specifically in the areas of infrastructure. I think they need to spearhead some projects to make sure that, especially in our major corridors, we have the right infrastructure in place for industry to move into those without having to worry about looking somewhere else because their needs aren't met.

QUESTION: What role do you think the county commissioners should have in helping to coordinate with community services such as water and sewer authorities, emergency medical services and bus transportation?

TRAINOR: Again, when it comes to the infrastructure point of it, the water and sewer, it's a municipality issue in many cases. It should not be a countywide issue. That's not something we need to take on; it's not something we necessarily have the money to take on.

However, they need to be there in an advisory role, because municipalities don't always have the ability to talk to each other and see how they can benchmark off this. So I think the county needs to be the focal point for that where they can take the information and say, “Hey, this county did this, so you guys should look at maybe doing this, and here's our plans for where we want to grow, or what we want to do and let's see how we can wrap that together.”

And maybe the county can be an adviser in that way. The same thing goes along with transportation. It's obviously important to all of the taxpayers in the county, so it's a county focus.

However, separate agencies, they have the resources that can carry that out. So I'd like to see them be able to talk with those agencies and give them strategic guidance without being overbearing.

Related Article: Republicans Seeking a County Seat