Who’s running this year:

Ward 3
Democratic Councilmember Karin Uhlich (2 terms) is seeking re-election to a third term. Opposing her is Republican Ben Buehler Garcia. Read my earlier post about Buehler-Garcia (click here), who challenged Uhlich in 2009 as well, and lost by 175 votes in a 3 way race.

Ward 5
Democratic Councilmember Richard Fimbres (one term) is seeking re-election. His opponent is small businessman Mike Polak II (click here for earlier post). Polak is a political newcomer.

Ward 6
New Democrat, former Republican Councilmember Steve Kozachik (one term) is seeking re-election and is running unopposed, unless there is a write in candidate in Ward 6.

More information on the Republican candidates (photos, bios, etc), go to Pima County Republican Party website (click here). More information on the Democratic Councilmembers (photos, campaign websites, bios, etc.), go to Pima County Democratic Party website (click here).

Bio from Polak:

• The Boeing Company 1997 to 2012, Long Beach, CA & Tucson, AZ. Worked with Domestic and International Air lines companies. Supported Satellite launch operations and international transportation.
• McDonnell Douglas Long Beach, CA 1987 to 1994
• Northrop 1986 to 1987
• 8 years in the United States Marine Corp
• Graduated for Southern California Institute of Technology with B.S. degrees in Computer Science and Electronic Engineering
• Small business owner.

He currently is the owner of Desert Armory Gun Parts & Accessories, a small business selling gun equipment and participating in gun shows. He says that his top priorities in this campaign are:
• Bringing Jobs to Tucson
• Improving the infrastructure and services in Tucson
• Improve public safety

Mike Polak II

Polak’s campaign info: mikeforcouncil@gmail.com, phone 520-243-3511, 2004 E. Irvington St. #175, website: Facebook.com/Mike for City Council.

Fimbres defeated political newcomer Republican Shaun McClusky in 2009 to win his Ward 5 seat (53% to 46%). Democratic Councilman Steve Leal had retired after 5 terms serving Ward 5.

Ward 3, 5, and 6 are up for election this year. One term Councilmember Steve Kozachik is running for re-election in Ward 6, as is 2 term Councilmember Karin Uhlich. All three Councilmembers up for re-election are Democrats. Kozachik is running unopposed at this time, and Uhlich is being challenged again by Republican community activist Ben Buehler-Garcia who lost to her in 2009, in a 3 way race with Green candidate Mary DeCamp.

On Wednesday, March 20th, Ward 6 Council Member Steve Kozachik will be joined by the City of Tucson’s four most recent mayors for a campaign kickoff event. Former mayors George Miller, Tom Volgy and Bob Walkup will join current Tucson Mayor Jonathan Rothschild at Borderlands Brewery in downtown Tucson for the event.

Steve Kozachik Campaign Kickoff
Wednesday, March 20, 5:30 – 7:00 P.M.
Borderlands Brewing Company
119 E. Toole Ave., Tucson, AZ 85701

“Borderlands is the perfect venue for this kick-off,” said Kozachik. “It’s the poster child of a successful private sector venture that has quickly grown into a successful downtown business. It is emblematic of the successes we’re seeing in the downtown core, a success story that I’m proud to have been a part of and one that I am excited to continue to support.”

Former Council Member and honorary campaign co-chair Carol West will also be in attendance. Kozachik announced previously that West, Walkup and former United States Surgeon General Richard Carmona will be co-chairing his campaign.

The event marks the first time in recent memory that four mayors, representing two parties have come together in support of a city council candidate. Each mayor offered their own insights into what makes Kozachik an effective leader, deserving of their endorsement.

The current Mayor Jonathan Rothschild (elected 2011) is a Democrat, along with former Mayors Tom Volgy (1987 to 1991) and George Miller (1991 to 1999). Former Mayor Robert Walkup (1999 to 2011) is a Republican.

Councilman Steve Kozachik (aka “Steve K” or “Koz”) is running unopposed for the Ward 6 Council office so far. He was elected to this seat as a Republican and just changed to a Democrat on January 14, 2013.

Two term Ward 3 Councilmember Democrat Karin Uhlich is facing Republican challenger Ben Buehler-Garcia, who ran against her before in 2009. He lost by 175 votes in a three-way race with Councilmember Uhlich and Green candidate Mary DeCamp.

One term Ward 5 Councilmember Democrat Richard Fimbres is facing a Republican challenger as well, political newcomer Mike Polak II, a self employed businessman. Stay tuned for a future post about Polak’s candidacy. He just filed his Statement of Organization on March 6 with the Tucson City Clerk.

Ben Buehler -Garcia

Republican Ben Buehler-Garcia filed a campaign finance Statement of Organization on 2/22/13 to challenge 2 term Councilmember Karin Uhlich in the Ward 3 race.

As a political newcomer he ran against incumbent Democrat Uhlich four years ago in 2009, and lost by 175 votes (33,782 to 33,607). Green party candidate Mary DeCamp got 4,429 votes in that three-way race. Uhlich was first elected in 2005 by defeating Republican incumbent Kathleen Dunbar in Ward 3.

Biography from the candidate:

Ben Buehler-Garcia is a 34 year resident of Tucson and Ward III. He first came to Tucson in order to attend the University of Arizona where he earned a degree in Public Administration with a Criminal Justice minor.

Ben has 25 years professional experience in Economic & Community development, serving 9 years in a management role at the Tucson Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce.

For the last 16 years he has been self-employed, providing Economic & Community Development Planning, Small Business Advocacy and Non-Profit Consulting Services.

A firm believer in volunteerism and community engagement, he has been recognized with the Copper Cactus Award for Community service for his role with organizations such as the United Way, Fox Tucson Theatre Foundation, the Arizona Children’s Foundation and the Tucson Community Cares Foundation.

He also volunteered 9 years with the City of Tucson Industrial Development Authority Board of Directors and 2 years as a member of the City of Tucson Economic and Workforce Development Selection Committee. For the past 9 years he has also served as Executive Director of the Stand Up for Kids Tucson Chapter, an all-volunteer organization working with homeless teens and street kids.

2013 campaign goals by Buehler-Garcia on why he is running again:

I have a great passion for our community and it breaks my heart that it has been allowed to drift so far from its true potential.

Things have not improved; Tucson was ranked the 6th poorest large metro area in 2011 and the City of Tucson’s most recent stress index states that 29.7% of children in the City live in poverty. More than half of our residential streets are in failing or poor condition. The same study shows that Ward III is ranked highest in the incidence of burglary & domestic violence (My own property has had 6 attempted burglaries and one successful burglary!) The lowest median household income in Tucson is in Ward III.

We have a top research university, a major defense installation & manufacturer, wonderful weather and are located 50 miles from one of our nation’s largest trading partners. How is it conceivable that we are not leading the state in economic recovery rather than trailing?

I believe that much of the waste in Rio Nuevo resulted from the lack of professional knowledge and political courage. Budgeting priorities are misplaced.

City Council Wards 3, 5, and 6 are up for re-election this year, and all three Democratic Councilmembers are speaking at Democrats of Greater Tucson (click here for earlier post). No Republican opponents have filed any statements of organization as yet against Councilmembers Fimbres (Ward 5) or Councilmember Kozachik (Ward 6).

February 18: Steve Kozachik, Councilmember, Ward 6 – Tucson City Council -Tucson’s newest Democratic Councilmember will discuss, “Tucson’s Gun Buy-Back — The Plan, The Event, What’s Next?”

February 25: Richard Fimbres, Councilmember, Ward 5 – Tucson City Council – “Oh the Changes I’ve Seen In the Tucson City Council”

March 25: Karin Uhlich, Councilmember, Ward 3 – Tucson City Council – “Tucson’s Future”

Democrats of Greater Tucson hosts weekly speakers at their Monday luncheon meetings at Dragon’s View restaurant, 400 N. Bonita Avenue, west of I-10, south of St. Mary’s Road, at high noon. Website: http://tucsondemocrats.org/

Both Kozachik and Fimbres were elected in 2009, winning over their challengers. Then-Republican Kozachik defeated Democratic incumbent Ward 6 Councilmember Nina Trasoff, who had served one term. Democrat Fimbres faced off with Republican political newcomer Shaun McClusky, who later tried to run for Mayor of Tucson in 2011. Fimbres’ wife Mary is a Council aide for Ward 2 Councilmember Paul Cunningham and she also worked for former five term Ward 5 Councilmember Steve Leal, who retired in 2009.

Kozachik changed his registration to a Democrat on January 14, 2013, and prior to that was the sole Republican on the Tucson City Council. This is his first appearance at DGT. I reported the breaking news when he announced his change in political parties (click here).

Uhlich is a two term Councilmember, as she first defeated Republican incumbent Ward 3 Councilmember Kathleen Dunbar for that seat in 2005, then in 2009 defeated two political newcomer challengers Republican Ben Buehler-Garcia, and Green Mary DeCamp. (DeCamp ran for Mayor two years later and defeated fellow Green activist Dave Croteau in their Mayoral primary, but lost in the General to Democrat Jonathan Rothschild.)

I heard on the John C. Scott radio talk show that Buehler-Garcia may be considering a rematch with Uhlich. No other contenders have been mentioned to date, but stay tuned.

2/25/13 UPDATES: Republican Ben Buehler-Garcia has filed papers to run in the Ward 3 Council race. Click here for post about Buehler-Garcia’s candidacy.

Councilman Fimbres’ campaign kick off is on March 9, 11 a.m. at El Pueblo Senior Center, 101 W. Irvington Rd.

Ward 3 Councilmember Karin Uhlich

Ward 5 Councilmember Richard Fimbres

Ward 6 Councilmember Steve Kozachik

Has it only been a year since UA Associate Director of Athletics for Facilities and Project Management Steve Kozachik was sworn in as the City of Tucson’s Ward 6 Councilmember? He and his staff should be congratulated on their hard work, especially on Rio Nuevo issues.

And Steve had never held public office before, so he had a lot to learn about the City of Tucson’s financial situation. He is a Republican and defeated Democratic incumbent Councilmember Nina Trasoff in November, 2009.

Councilmember Steve Kozachik

Council Office: Ward Six staff
Ann Charles, Council Adminstrative Assistant
Barbara Jacob, Administrative Assistant
Donovan Durband, Council Administrative Assistant
Teresa Olson, Council Administrative Assistant
Christal Ferree, Executive Assistant

Donovan used to write for us at Tucsoncitizen.com (“Urban Durband”) until he was hired by Steve.

Join them for a non-partisan holiday party for all.

Happy Holidays!

Ward 3 Council office is having their holiday event today (no fancy flyer received, just an email notice):

Holiday Event and State of the Ward with Council Member Karin Uhlich -
December 15 – 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. Hors d’oeuvres from Pastiche. Ward 3
Council Office, 1510 E. Grant Road. A presentation from the Ward 3
Neighbors’ Alliance will start the evening off with their agenda for
the first quarter of 2011.

Councilmember Karin Uhlich

Council Office: Ward Three Staff
Tamara Prime, Chief of Staff
George Pettit, Council Administrative Assistant
Linda Mehall, Office Supervisor
Lisa Ross, Administrative Assistant

This is Democratic Councilmember Uhlich’s 2nd term in office. She defeated Republican incumbent Ward 3 Councilmember Kathleen Dunbar in 2005, and Republican challenger Ben Buehler-Garcia and Green Party challenger Mary DeCamp in 2009. She is the Executive Director for the Center for Economic Integrity.

Season’s greetings to all.

Attend either or both of these Council offices’ holiday events, and get to know your Councilmembers.

The Council of Senior Citizen Organizations (COSCO), a program of Pima Council on Aging, is hosting a forum for all official City Council candidates for Wards 3, 5, and 6 in the upcoming November 3rd general election. This forum will be on Thursday, October 15, 10 a.m. to 12 noon at the Armory Park Senior Center, 220 S. 5th Avenue, downtown between E. 12th and E. 13th Streets, south of Broadway Blvd.

Here’s who’s running:

Ward 3:

Ben Buehler-Garcia (Republican), www.buehler-garcia.com

Mary DeCamp (Green), www.decampcampaign.org

Karin Uhlich (Democrat incumbent), www.karin2009.com

Ward 5:

Richard Fimbres (Democrat), www.fimbresforcouncil.com

Shaun McClusky (Republican), www.voteshaun.com

Ward 6:

Steve Kozachik (Republican), www.votestevek.com

Nina Trasoff (Democrat incumbent), www.trasofffortucson.com

The Council of Senior Citizen Organizations is “committed to providing accurate, timely information about services, legislation and social and human service issues relevant to older adults and their caregivers.” You don’t have to be a senior citizen to show up and find out about these candidates and incumbent Councilmembers at this forum. Check out the candidates’ websites to find out more about them and why they want to represent the residents of Wards 3, 5, and 6.

I hope all the candidates show up to discuss aging issues with voters in our community, as there haven’t been many “meet the candidates” forums this fall. Since this forum is downtown, an obvious question to ask is also about progress on Rio Nuevo!

And remember to vote on November 3rd. The choice is yours.

7 tables of about 10 residents dialogued with each other and a facilitator in answering these initial questions, followed by brief welcomes from Councilmember Karin Uhlich and City Manager Mike Letcher. A budget analysis disclosed that the discussion tonight was to concentrate on the 32% of discretionary funds of the City’s budget.

Then the same tables were asked these questions: 1) What City services do you use? 2) What City services would you maintain or cut, and why? 3) What new resources, revenues or efficiencies should be pursued by the City? 4) What services should the City invest in for our community’s future?

I recognized several activists present at the meeting: John Kromko, Tres English, Dick Bayse, Judith Anderson (Pro Neighborhoods), Jim Murphy (PCOA), and Ben Buehler-Garcia, candidate for Ward 3 Council seat. About 15 City staffers (including TPD officers) were available as resource persons.

No consensus was reached or vote was taken in answering these questions, but records of each table’s discussion with lots of creative, varied responses will be collated and put onto the City website at: www.tucsonaz.gov/dialogues. I question whether these comments won’t just be a compilation of anecdotal responses from all 8 dialogues/ meetings, without any clear mandate from the participants. Let’s wait and see since the website says that the goal of this process is “working together to set city budget priorities”.

The calendar for the upcoming meetings are listed in my previous blog and by clicking on the link above. The next meeting will be on Sat. 10/3 at El Pueblo Neighborhood Center, 9 to 11 a.m. Questions/comments can be directed by email to dialogues@tucsonaz.gov, or by calling 520-791-4204.

So the next best bet is to turn on the TV to KUAT Channel 6, Az Illustrated, 6:30 p.m.on the following evenings:

Sept. 30: Ward 3
Councilmember (1 term) Karin Uhlich vs. challengers Ben Buehler-Garcia and Mary DeCamp

October 5: Ward 5
Richard Fimbres and Shaun McClusky, both vying for the seat to be vacated by 5 term Councilmember Steve Leal

October 9: Ward 6
Councilmember (1 term) Nina Trasoff vs. challenger Steve Kozachik

Tune in and find out whom to vote for at the General Election on Nov. 3. I’m no longer sure if it’s politically correct to list their political parties, so I’m leaving that out for now. If you miss these shows, log onto Arizona Public Media’s website and use the “On Demand” link to locate the show you are interested in.