Wellington Board of Trustees election: Q&A with candidate Rebekka Dailey
Name: Rebekka Dailey
Race: Wellington Board of Trustees
Question: What makes you qualified to hold a town board seat in Wellington?
Answer: Capability for passionate leadership, engagement, and trustworthiness, fueled by the expertise from the following roles and experiences:
Wellington Planning Commissioner
PSD State of Our Youth
Parks, Recreation, Open Spaces, & Trails Advisory Board (Wellington PROST)
Wellington Area Chamber of Commerce
Boys and Girls Club
BizWest 40 under Forty Award
Wellington Main Street Program Volunteer of the Year Award
Regional partnerships, awards, volunteer experience and more at RebekkaforTrustee.com.
DOLA & Colorado Municipal League Annual Conferences regarding attainable housing, economic development, aging communities, libraries, infrastructure, safety and more.
Q: What are your top three priorities if elected, and why?
A:
Enforcing the residents’ vision for Wellington.
Strategic economic development.
Improving our quality of life.
Q: What are Wellington's top three challenges, and what would you do about them?
A:
Lack of vision. Wellington has been paralyzed by water for a long time, which will be resolved this summer. The residents were clear on where we should be headed through extensive engagement to build our comprehensive plan. Trustees should serve in creating policy and planning for the future; it’s time to do that.
Economic development. Excessive sales tax escapes Wellington daily and will continue to do so until we aggressively implement strategic economic development. The money we spend in Fort Collins or Timnath is repaving their streets, building their parks and funding their capital projects. As much as I want to be a friendly regional partner, we need our sales tax to stay in Wellington and contribute to our well-being.
Quality of life. Our town needs amenities, gathering spaces, recreation and essential services and businesses. Every survey and engagement process screams for a rec center and begs to improve the quality of life for residents, yet they aren’t prioritized. I can change that and do it the right way, with the right fit and funding driven by the residents' will. All these things build community, culture, pride, events, accountability, economic vitality and physical and mental wellness. Wellington residents and businesses deserve all these things.
Q: Wellington’s population will double in the next 20 years. What should the town be doing to prepare for this growth?
A: Our current challenge has been the capacity of treating water and wastewater. The resolution with our plant expansions will be complete by fall; let us be cautious of candidates promising to rescue Wellington’s water processing concerns when these yearslong, major projects finalize a few months after the election.
The next challenge is obtaining water rights, backup water sources and creating a plan to continue sustainably beyond 20 years. Our current water contract is 40 years old and entirely inapplicable for the volume and use of water decades later! We cannot make the same mistake of our past, only to pass on the burden to resolve to our grandchildren. This term is critical in securing and planning water for Wellington’s future.
This strategic planning and action must be applied to all infrastructure, economic vitality, amenities, Wellington’s culture, organizational strength and even the future of the internet. How will we innovate? We must focus on the future, or Wellington will be left behind. Wellington needs my comprehensive knowledge and leadership to look forward.
Q: Some current Wellington trustees have said a lack of trust among the board makes it difficult to govern. How would you address that?
A: We need consensus and mutual respect to operate productively. I am committed to showing up for all of Wellington.
National politics have no place here.
Leave your egos at the door.
Communicate professionally and productively.
Be respectful.
Know your role.
Q: The water and wastewater treatment plants that will help meet the town’s future growth needs are opening later in the year. How do you see the plants affecting water rates residents are paying now and going into the future?
A: Reducing our cost of water, improving operational efficiency, strategic healthy growth, carefully considering and limiting water needs of new development through land use code amendments, and a community effort to have purposeful intention on how they use water all impact our fees! Every angle must be attacked simultaneously to give our residents some relief!
Continuing utility rate hikes that put more burden on our residents without a plan for remedy is wrong. Beyond this summer, when the expansions go online, Wellington is open for business! Now that we can count down the days until our expansions are online, we must get Wellington on track with healthy, sustainable growth to fund infrastructure appropriately, rather than leaving that burden on ratepayers.
Trustees have the authority and duty to memorialize our community values in code. I’m not talking about reading blueprints, I’m talking about how development negotiations and policies can build sustainable and welcoming small-town values now and forever. This requires significant planning experience that I have acquired over years of service to Wellington alongside Lowrey (Moyer) and Ed (Cannon). A pivotal moment is quickly approaching for Wellington, we do not have time for a learning curve.
Please be aware that the town has a Hardship Utility Grant (HUG) of up to $300 annually to help if you are experiencing tough times.
Q: Other items you’d like to discuss that weren’t mentioned in the questionnaire?
A: It was a personal privilege to draft the Comprehensive Plan with residents to summarize our vision and needs into four pillars: community cohesion, a thriving economy, reliable and resilient public services, and a vibrant and historic downtown. Personal intentions and motivations have interrupted this loud voice of our residents and their vision, and it’s unacceptable. I’m excited to redirect our board for Wellington.
More about Rebekka Dailey
Occupation: Director of Business Intelligence
Have you held elected office before? Town Trustee
If you have a college degree, where did you attend school and what did you study? Master’s and bachelor's degree in organizational leadership, Colorado State University-Global Campus
Length of time in town? Waverly eight years, Wellington 10 years
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Wellington Board of Trustees election: Q&A with candidate Rebekka Dailey
