Long-time Battle Ground City Council Member Bill Ganley, who is currently serving his fifth consecutive term on the council, will face challenger Steven Douglas Phelps Nov. 5 in the race for Battle Ground City Council Position No. 6.
Here’s a closer look at the candidates:
Bill Ganley
Bill Ganley, 54, has lived in Battle Ground for 22 years. He is married to wife Brenda and has a step-son, Austin. Ganley has worked for the Battle Ground School District for 33 years, 29 years as a teacher at Battle Ground High School. In 2010, he took a teaching position at Summit View High School and currently teachers world history, U.S. history and U.S. government.
Ganley was first elected to the Battle Ground City Council in 1993, also serving for four years as the mayor of Battle Ground from 1997 to 2001. Ganley first decided to run for city council because he was concerned about the rapid growth the city was experiencing as the previous sewer moratorium was lifted. The moratorium had previously limited new housing.
“No longer was Battle Ground going to be a small community,” Ganley said. “It was going to face many challenges such as growth management, providing for an increasing need for public services and methods in which to fund those needs.”
Ganley has continued to run for re-election because he said he believes he brings a historical perspective to the council, as he is the only member who served under the strong mayor form of government.
Regarding some of the biggest challenges facing the city, Ganley said he believes those include restoring the funding levels to what they were prior to the recession, catching up on maintenance that was deferred during the recession, such as striping streets and replacing streetlights, and there is a need to increase citizen involvement in making decisions regarding how the city’s limited funds should be spent.
Ganley said that he believes both he and his opponent truly want what’s best for the citizens of Battle Ground and that one of the only major differences between he and Phelps is experience.
“I live and work in our community, and I have the passion and curiosity to make Battle Ground a great city for our current and future citizens,” Ganley said. “I think my experience will help the council make good decisions. I have a passion to serve our citizens, and I believe my experience and historical perspective are assets to the city council and the citizens.”
Steven Phelps
Steven Phelps, 65, has been a resident of the Battle Ground area for 23 years. Phelps has been married to his wife Judith for 45 years and they have three children, Zak, Joshua and Johanna, who are all graduates of Battle Ground High School and all have college degrees. Phelps and his wife also have one grandson. Phelps retired from General Electric in 2006 and is a veteran, an electrical engineer and has led four businesses with “profit and loss responsibly.”
This will be Phelps’ first time running for a city council position and he said he chose to do so because the future of Battle Ground is “our children and grandchildren.”
“The addition of a new grandson to our family has quickened my heart to help ensure our community is a city worth inheriting,” Phelps said.
Phelps said that he thinks one of the biggest challenges facing the City of Battle Ground right now is leadership.
“I have attended many city council meetings and after the last council meeting on Sept. 23, I realized that the polarization in our city is not productive,” he said. “We need city councilors that can lead.”
One of the major differences that Phelps said he sees between he and his opponent is that he has real-world experience. One example, he said, is that during Hurricane Katrina in 2005, he was asked to lead the effort to restore the flooded city of New Orleans. He directed a war room that accomplished the task of providing the technical leadership, craftsmen and equipment to completely refurbish the hydro pumps that are owned by the Corps of Engineers.
One thing Phelps said he and his opponent have in common is that they both oppose the Columbia River Crossing.
“I am an experienced business leader, team builder and problem solver,” Phelps said.
The general election is Nov. 5.
