EAU CLAIRE — Candidate Sam Owens said he has had issues with what has been happening in the county and the city thought this was a chance for him to do something.
Owens is a candidate for the Eau Claire County District 28 supervisor seat. He is running against Jim Schumacher.
District 28 is made up of wards 31, 32, and 51 in the City of Eau Claire.
The issues Owens had with what was happening in the area include urban blight and local government’s approach to bringing in businesses.
He currently sells beer for Beechwood Sales And Service and helps local businesses with their beer menus, what their plans are for the future, and the costs.
“I’m very analytical when it comes to parsing data for people,” said Owens. “I really enjoy cost efficiency and looking at how we can simplify things.”
He said he also likes helping people find opportunities within his job. He tries to find ways to help bars and restaurants who use his products to succeed in their businesses.
“I want to see what we can do about bringing the River Prairie Model into the greater county,” he said.
The candidate said the model has been very successful, especially for the City of Altoona. The model draw people in with local businesses, beautiful natural spaces, and areas that are close enough to walk to.
Owens said a big issue facing the county is organizations going out of business and leaving the area.
He stated that the county and the city have also not been welcoming to businesses wanting to come in. It feels like businesses are receiving a "pathological passive aggressiveness" from the local municipalities.
“I think that we’ve really missed the mark on attracting large scale employers and I think there’s endless opportunity to do that,” said Owens.
He said he wants find ways to bring in larger businesses. One possibility he is looking into is economic opportunity zones, which would encourage business growth in them.
Another issue facing his area is urban blight, said Owens. An area can be called blighted if it has ruined buildings.
One thing he noticed when passing by Banbury Place was the hollow buildings. This left him with questions about if they could add to that space and what they could include.
“I like to think that there’s ways that we can establish new places and new things,” said Owens.
Owens said he can bring his experiences to the county board, which do not currently have his perspectives. These include his time in the private sector and service industry.
Having many different perspectives on the county board are incredibly important, he said.
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