Bacon seeks second term

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BROOKINGS – Patty Bacon has announced her bid for re-election to the Brookings City Council. 

“It would be an honor to continue to provide leadership to ensure that Brookings is a visionary and vibrant community,” Bacon said. “We face important issues as this community continues to grow, and we need to make responsible decisions that will ensure we’ve looked at the long-range outcomes of our actions.”

Opening on the Brookings City Council this year are the mayor post, with a three-year term, and three council seats, two with three-year terms now held by Bacon and Nick Wendell and a one-year post currently held by Holly Tilton Byrne.

Nominating petitions are due at the City Clerk’s office by 5 p.m. Feb. 23, and Corbett’s is the only petition for a city office to be turned in so far.

The city/school election is April 10, and the last day to register to vote is March 26. Early voting begins March 26.

Bacon, who is seeking another three years as a city councilor, says she’s learned a great deal during her first term. 

“The future of our community is in the hands of seven individuals, and I am certain I provide a receptive ear to Brookings residents, a constructive working relationship with other members of the council and leadership on the broad range of issues affecting our city.”

Bacon said she has the passion to lead Brookings to become the most sustainable community in the region. She created and chairs the Brookings Affordable Housing Task Force, serves on the Women in Leadership & Learning advisory board, the Chamber Government Affairs committee and the Brookings Visioning Charette group, and is a donor/member of a number of local charitable organizations. She also provides pro bono consulting and facilitation for local nonprofits.

Bacon and the Affordable Housing Task Force prepared a report for the city council in October. In it they identified the need for affordable housing for middle- and low-income families as well as barriers to the creation of more affordable housing units in Brookings. The Task Force offered two tiers of strategies for the city council to address. 

“It will take the partnership of city council, developers, bankers and other housing related entities to strategically address this problem and work toward a diminished need for affordable housing,” Bacon said.

“It is my goal to provide the leadership necessary for the council to conduct thorough research on an issue, listen to community members and then step back and take the necessary time to assess the situation.” Bacon is experienced in advocacy and policy work at the state and national level on a variety of issues including affordable housing.

Bacon and her husband, Richard Larson, have lived in the Brookings area for more than 40 years. She recently retired from 30-plus years of work in the nonprofit arena, including more than 15 years with Habitat for Humanity at the state and local level. She enjoys riding bicycle and canoeing with her husband and is an active crafter. Her favorite hobby is making homemade soap.

Her website www.pattybacon.com and Facebook page “Patty Bacon for Brookings” lists her vision and priorities for serving on the council. They include increasing citizen participation in the process, promoting economic development around sustainable industries, addressing affordable housing issues, and completing the bicycle trail loop around and through Brookings.