HERMISTON — Five candidates running for four Hermiston City Council positions shared their vision for Hermiston during a candidate forum hosted by the Hermiston Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday, Oct. 6.

Candidates’ views diverged on several questions, including the city’s role in addressing homelessness. The question has been a topic of debate locally after residents formed a nonprofit known as Stepping Stones in an effort to create a homeless shelter in the city.

Incumbent Doug Primmer said the city has a responsibility to help all residents, including those that are homeless, and the city should look at “methods to provide some type of assistance.”

However, he also stated he heard that some homeless people were already moving to Hermiston specifically in the hopes of seeing a shelter built there. Police Chief Jason Edmiston told the council during a recent meeting that at least one person had told officers he had come to Hermiston specifically because he heard a shelter might be built.

“I don’t want us to be a destination for the homeless, or a dumping point,” Primmer said.

Councilor David McCarthy said he felt it was in the city’s best interest to provide somewhere homeless residents can safely stay, and find services that will help them be “contributing members of society.”

“I don’t know if the answer is the projects that have been presented to us so far,” he said. “But I do think that, especially with the letters of support and the letters against projects like Stepping Stones, we need to be examining this more closely since this is an issue that, obviously, people care about.”

Maria Duron, who is running for the council for the first time, said homelessness is a “state issue” and the city should be looking toward state funding and partnerships with local groups to fund more permanent solutions than the Hermiston Warming Station and Martha’s House.

Councilor Rod Hardin said the city needs somewhere for homeless residents to stay, but he said the biggest challenge is finding the right location. He said he was pleased to see the faith community step up to look for solutions.

Nancy Peterson, also running for the first time, rebuked the rest of the candidates for the language they used when talking about the city’s homeless residents.

“I think the first thing we need to do is stop talking about ‘those homeless people’ and we need to start talking about ‘us,’” she said. “We need to personalize this because we are all — if not those of us in here, then the people we pass on the street — one or two paychecks away from being one of ‘those people.’”

Peterson said she was once homeless for three months, despite working two jobs during that time period. She said beyond shelter, people experiencing homelessness need access to things like showers, transportation and a place to pick up their mail in order to be able to get or keep a job.

Peterson, who is a retention specialist for the disability rights office at Columbia Basin College, spoke throughout the night about how she believes her personal experiences, from a past as a single mother to having a disability, will help her represent a wide variety of Hermiston residents. She said the council needs to “go where the diversity is” to genuinely listen to concerns from people from all types of situations.

She said she has wanted to run for office since being a young girl licking stamps for her parents’ political efforts, and has reached a point in her life where she has the experience and the support to do so.

Duron, the other newcomer to the race, spoke of her past experience as a Hermiston School Board member and how past jobs have helped her work closely with the city, particularly the Hispanic Advisory Committee. She described herself as a “hardworking Latina” and a “servant leader” who wants to help the city continue to grow.

She also said she would like to work on more outreach to Spanish-speaking residents, and expressed disappointment that a recent emergency message from the Umatilla County Sheriff’s Office asking people to evacuate ahead of a fire along Powerline Road was only sent out in English.

David McCarthy, who was appointed to his seat on the council in June, cited his service to the community in roles, such as Kiwanis Club president, and said one thing he is passionate about is helping increase access to technology in Hermiston. When asked what he would do if the city had increased resources, he said he would like to see the city increase visibility and lighting around pedestrian crossings in town.

Rod Hardin, who has served on the council for 28 years, said he wanted to bring his experience to the council for one more term. He said as Hermiston grows he would like to see an expansion of public transportation options for residents. He said he supports the city’s efforts to rebuild Funland Playground and said he hopes to see other recreational options, including a new skate park that was designed but has yet to get funding, added.

Doug Primmer, who has served on the council since 2012, said he has a strong sense of justice and of public service developed over a career that has included working for the Department of Corrections, being a rescue diver and a reserve for the Umatilla County Sheriff’s Office. When asked about the future of Hermiston, he said getting more water for agriculture and industry in the area is a key to the city’s future growth. He also said he wants to make sure the city continues to monitor its spending carefully and foster growth to make sure it has available funding for future projects.

On Nov. 3, Hermiston voters will be able to vote for their top four choices for the four at-large seats up for reelection. The top four vote-getters will be sworn into those seats in January.

For a video of the full forum, visit youtube.com/watch?v=2tXh-751jAs on the Hermiston Chamber of Commerce’s YouTube channel.