District 2 candidates square off on county issues

SCHULZ

GREENWALD

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PROPERTY TAXES

The funding model for local services really doesn’t work in a stagnant or shrinking community. The inflation during the Biden era and covid pushed costs to a ridiculous level. Tax bills should not look like mortgage payments.””

Tom Schulz, Republican candidate for District 2 Supervisor

TRANSPARENCY

The first think I would do is open the books completely. I mean that literally – full budget transparency, line by line, presented to the public in plain language.”

Chris Greenwald, Democrat candidate for District Supervisor 2

LEE COUNTY – One of the most interesting local races that few are paying attention to is the District 2 Supervisors race between former Fort Madison city councilmen Chris Greenwald and Tom Schulz.
Schulz knocked off incumbent Tim Wondra on the Republican ticket in the primary, and Greenwald was unopposed.
Pen City Current provided a list of questions to each candidate and then followed up with phone sessions to expand on the answers. Those questions are listed below with each candidate’s responses, including expanded follow-up information. Greenwald’s answers are first as he is alphabetically first.
No. 1 – Lee County is efforting to create guidance for high-impact economic development projects to include data centers, but also nuclear projects, etc. Describe your views on where the county should step in to protect property owners and where the county should allow enterprise to take place.
Greenwald said the issue is at the forefront of the county right now.
“This is the central governance question facing Lee County right now, and I think it comes down to one principle – economic development is welcome but not at the expense of residents who do not have a voice in the process. Lee County is one of the last counties in Iowa without zoning. That gap is not a feature, it is a liability,” he said.
He said the county needs to establish clear, enforceable standards for high-impact projects including noise, setbacks, environmental concerns, and a genuine public input process before shovels go into the ground.
Schulz had a similar take on the issue.
“This is really pretty simple. Development, including data centers, should only take place if it can be done without a negative impact on the surrounding property. Schulz said new data center technology shows improvement in water ecology and noise reduction.
“Modern data centers use no more, and often less, water than many existing industries in this area. Noise is something that must be regulated and is easily measured,” he said. He also pointed out that power usage, however, is something that must be considered in all high-impact projects.
2. Property tax is one of the most hotly debated issues facing Lee County. With voters demanding relief, but the county’s external and internal costs continuing to inflate, how would you approach balancing that friction?
Greenwald said the best approach would be to advocate for engagement with the public.
“The first thing I would do is open the books completely. I mean that literally – full budget transparency, line by line, presented to the public in plain language," he said.
Lee County budget discussions annually are done in open session and budget proposals and final approvals are part of open meetings and votes. But Greenwald said he’s talking about engagement of voters and a better understanding by the public, of what the county budget looks like.
“I’m not convinced the county has done that work,” he said.
Schulz said the current system is out of control, including assessments, and partially blamed Biden-era inflation for ongoing problems.
“Property taxes are out of control and the appraisal model is horribly broken,” he said. “Every time state lawmakers screw with it, they make it worse. The funding model for local services really doesn’t work in a stagnant or shrinking community. The inflation during the Biden era and covid pushed costs to a ridiculous level. Tax bills should not look like mortgage payments.”
3. There is some school of thought that the county is bloated when it comes to services. Where do you see areas where the county could “slim down” and how would you approach that with the board and constituents.
Greenwald said “bloated” can mean different things to different people and went back to his opinion on the budget. He said supervisors need to go through the budget line by line.
“There is a difference between spending that is genuinely wasteful, and services that feel discretionary until the day someone needs them,” he said.
He said the county needs to take a ‘zero-based’ review of its service delivery and not make last year’s budget the starting point.
“Start from scratch and ask what this county actually needs to provide, and what is the most cost-effective way to provide it,” he said.
He also favored considering regionalized services where that consolidation would make the most sense for Lee County.
Schulz said he really doesn’t see that much bloating of budget or services.
“Having seen this from the inside, I don’t see that much bloat. Keeping offices in two towns has a cost, but the people clearly want those services,” he said. “As budgets tighten, services may need to be cut. I have always said, first we do what is legally required, then we do what is really needed. Then we see what is left for the things people want done.
Schulz said the Lee County Health Department has done a good job and prioritizing their budget and that could be a template for other departments to consider.  He said budget processes shouldn’t be like “cheerleader” meetings, but as a supervisor previously he helped realign that process to be about the budget and not just success stories.
No. 4 – Incentive vs. granular growth. Is TIF good for the county? Are PILOT programs like Iowa Fertilizer Company’s good for the county? What’s your philosophy on growing the county’s tax base when competition for industry is so incentive-based. Current property tax laws limiting growth also have an impact on those programs.
Greenwald said those incentive tools are tools and they can be used well or they can be used poorly.
“My philosophy is that incentives should be tied to specific, measurable outcomes – jobs created, wages paid, capital invested, and tax base generated – with real accountability mechanisms and clawback provisions if those outcomes are not met,” he said.
He said diligence needs to be done to get a solid feel on whether or not the company would locate here anyway, and whether or not the incentive would be justified over its lifespan.
Schulz had a similar philosophy but said “math has to math” for overall long- and short-term benefits to the taxpayer.
“The law from the state level has been in flux as to how this can affect other funding streams. I think “caution” and “discretion” are both important words to remember here,” he said.
No. 5 – Population decline. This is a constant headwind for the county over the past several decades. What are your thoughts on how we dig out of that? Are we doing the right things?
“I’ll be direct. No,” he said. “I think we are doing some things, but without the urgency or the coherent strategy the problem demands.”
He said the decline is driven by limited job opportunities, housing stock that doesn’t meet needs, and a perception that the county is not a place where things are happening.
“You can’t solve that with a single program,” he said.
Greenwald said he would push for frank, public discussions about what Lee County needs to offer to compete for residents, specifically the 25-45 demographic that counties like ours consistently lose.
Schulz said the county is doing some things right and others wrong.
“The overall look of the county is improving, and property costs are not as out of control as some areas. But property taxes are often a problem,” he said. “We need more and better tech and blue-collar job training."
He said he would want the county to continue its work with local economic development agencies and believes that we may see the county turn around in this area. But he said funding for those efforts has to be considered, and supervisors may need to work harder promoting their communities.
“How deep can you dig into your pockets for some of this stuff,” he said. “And this isn’t just what we do in that room one morning a week. It’s what we do within our communities. Do you see us? Are we promoting things?”
No. 6 – Healthcare – This topic typically stays at the state and federal level because that’s where the deeper pockets are. But what do you see is the Board of Supervisors' role in facilitating the best, most effective, most efficient localized health care?
Greenwald said the county doesn’t run hospitals or set insurance policy, but it has more influence over healthcare access than most people realize, including supervisors.
“I think the current board has not used that influence as actively as it could,” he said.
“I see significant unmet need and significant room for the board to do better – more community-based services, better coordination with regional providers, and less reliance on the emergency room as the default response to mental health crises,” he said.
Schulz said the board’s role is creating a good, healthy environment.
“This year I think the county’s general budget is about $21 million. Great River Health’s budget is about $457 million. How much do you think county government can do,” he said. “There’s not going to be money in the budget to do anything significant to prop up a health facility, nor am I sure there’s any legal footing for it.”
No. 7 – Facilities. What would you bring to the county in terms of facility inventory guidance. Where is there bloat and where are there opportunities?
Greenwald said he would want to do a thorough facilities audit before making any specific recommendations. The county currently has a building review committee in place but he said he would need current data.
“What I can say is that my general approach would be to evaluate every county-owned or county-leased facility against three questions: Is it being used efficiently, Is it being maintained adequately, and does it serve a county function that the county should actually be (involved) in?”
He said he would also prioritize the basics before considering any new facility projects.
Schulz said the county is utilizing the facilities it has. He said the courthouse issue has become an issue for the county. The state passed a law several years ago that allows Lee County to combine judicial services to one area of the county whereas before it was required to hold them in Keokuk and Fort Madison. “There is the courthouse issue that no matter what is done we have an expensive albatross hanging around our neck, with major issues headed our way to keep them operational,” Schulz said.
No. 8 – What would your approach be as a Lee County Supervisor, agenda leader or voter advocate.
Greenwald said neither approach is a model for him, but he leans toward being proactive. He said a reactive supervisor is a place holder.
“We have real structural challenges that require someone willing to say this is what I think needs to happen and here is why,” he said. “But a supervisor who treats the job as an opportunity to impose his/her own agenda without listening to the constituents is equally wrong for a county like ours. The people who live here have seen enough of that.”
Greenwald said he wants to be a supervisor that constituents throughout the county can reach out to and provided his cellphone number at 319-669-6000.
Schulz said he always tries to put himself at the “tip of the spear”.
“Purchasing procedures, wind and solar, internet expansion, EMS restructuring…I work behind and in front of the scene to protect the taxpayer and provide essential services.”
No. 9 – If you could talk to every single voter one on one, what would you say to win that vote.
Greenwald said that would come down to him living in the county his whole life, while raising a family and running a business. He’s served on local committees, the Fort Madison City Council, and as a reserve police officer.
“I’m not running because I want a title or because I have a political agenda to advance. I am running because I think the county is capable of more than it has been delivering, and I believe I have the experience and the commitment to help move it in the right direction.”
Schulz said there is nothing that should be able to be said to “win votes.”
“You be honest with the people, you listen to their concerns, and you act responsibly to their benefit. When the government outside your authority is acting outside our population’s best interest you carry the fight there as their advocate. I have built relationships and alliances at the county, state, and national level that I will utilize to the benefit of Lee County and its people.