Local town council candidates were asked three questions about running for elected office.
Today’s answers are from Etna Green Town Council incumbents Jason Hanes, Republican, and Susan Klinefelter, Libertarian, and candidate Heath Roberts, Republican. Incumbent Keith Claassen, Republican, is also running, but he did not respond by the deadline.
Question 1: What is your background and why do you think you'd be a good fit for town council?

    Jason Hanes  

Hanes: For the past four years I've been a council member. Some of my accomplishments are library vouchers for the Bourbon library, reestablishing a contract with Kosciusko County Sheriff's Department for patrolling, setting up a system for receiving grants to repave streets like Spring and Pearl, establishing a not-for-profit to fund our 4th of July events and helped to start the Etna food pantry.
Klinefelter: Growing up in Mentone, I have lived in Etna Green for the past 47 years. My work experience was at OEC in Bourbon, United then Sprint and Zimmer. With an understanding on how people feel or would feel about issues are a plus when making decisions for the town. I am committed and motivated to serve all residents in Etna Green. Having enjoyed the past four years as a council member I hope to continue working on making the town even better than it already is.
Roberts: My name is Heath Roberts and I’ve lived in Etna Green since I was 18 years old. I’ve owned Fasttimes Fabrication Custom Sheet Metal Shop in Etna Green for over 16 years. I started working in Etna Green when I was 16 for Harold White at the mobile gas station. Then moved on to work at Poulson Ford as a mechanic for Al Sharkey.
I think I would be a good town council member because I’m a long-term resident of Etna Green and a local small business owner. I think my experience with running a successful small business would be a great benefit to the town council.
Question 2: What do you think the most important issues facing Etna Green are and why?
Hanes: The number one thing currently facing Etna Green, in my opinion, is employee retention and training.
We have lost some very well-seasoned leaders over the past year.
Our current council has set up a very good plan for this.

   Susan Klinefelter  

Klinefelter: Losing young people to larger towns and not being able to attract new residents has been an issue for many years. We have help with policing from the sheriff's department and they do a great job, but they are not here 24/7. There is a concern by many with vehicles racing down our streets and damage created by kids in town. Also, a dying downtown is of concern, but Etna Green has been more fortunate than most small towns across the state in keeping the downtown fairly active and the buildings maintained.
Roberts: Recently here in Etna Green, we have lost two long-term employees and the two new employees didn’t receive a lot of training prior to starting. I think that it’s really important that we set up some schedules and routines so that we know important things in town are being addressed and properly taken care of. As well as I think it’s important that we get more community members involved and attending the town council meetings.
Question 3: What do you think the role of the town council should be?
Hanes: The job for the town council is to make decisions and pay the bills.
I believe in a small town it takes a little more vigilance. Our council has to pay attention to the people of the town but also get the work done to keep up with the state standards and keep our town beautiful.

    Heath Roberts  

Klinefelter: The town council should always remember that they work for every single resident in town and should serve them the best they can. They should seek opinions on issues and be a good listener. The council should be honest with their actions and also the approach that is taken with issues.

Roberts: Town council members serve as the executive and legislative branches for small towns and taking care of the town budgets. Small business, planning ahead and interacting with the people in this community matter.