Commentary and Opinion By Donna Westfall – March 3, 2024
Heather Pollen is running for 5th District Supervisor against incumbent Dean Wilson and Linda Sutter. I spent some time with Heather and three other people at the Methodist Church at a Meet and Greet;. Kevin Hendrick and a couple from the Bertsch Tract.
She does a very nice job on her promotional materials. She speaks fast and well. She can cover a broad range of subjects. Yet, when pinned down to some specifics, she didn’t seem that invested or knowledgeable. Usually people get involved in politics because some specific issue draws them in. For me it was the Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrade and expansion. For Rivers Drown running for 2nd District it is crime and drugs. Heather has not spent much time attending Board of Supervisors meetings although she says she watches the meetings on the computer.
I told her I supported Dean Wilson in his last run because he said all the right things when we interviewed him. However, his voting record showed that he supported taxes and bigger government. Heather Pollen said it would depend on what the tax was for. At least she was being honest. However, in this day and age, I’d like to see a candidate that is not only against any further taxes, but wants to repeal taxes already on the board. And we definitely don’t need bigger government. We need businesses and jobs. We need to build the private sector.
Her background. She says she has always loved helping people. It started when she was a young woman in church. For the past year she has been working for True North Organizing Network. I don’t personally know all that much about True North except that many of their actions and activities seem very leftist, not to say they are all wrong. They are well organized. Several of the people on their staff and Board I know; Amy Campbell-Blair (wife of Joel Campbell-Blair, former Del Norte County Counsel) and Pat Black. The True North website contains the following:
“TRUE NORTH IS NOT ALIGNED EXPLICITLY OR IMPLICITLY WITH ANY CANDIDATE OR PARTY. WHILE TRUE NORTH IS WORKING TO PROMOTE CIVIC PARTICIPATION INCLUDING VOTER REGISTRATION AND EDUCATION, WE DO NOT ENDORSE, SUPPORT, OR OPPOSE CANDIDATES FOR OFFICE.
517 3RD ST, STE 16, EUREKA, CA , 95501 I INFO@TRUENORTHORGANIZING.ORG I (707) 572-5530“
When I asked Heather about her ideas for creating jobs she said:
1. Fish processing plant. She didn’t know that we used to have a fish processing plant. Albers Seafood closed their doors in Crescent City in 2019. That’s not to say we don’t need a fish processing plant, but maybe she needs to do some research as to why that plant closed.
2. Slaughterhouse. I agree. We could use a slaughterhouse. I explained to her that years ago, some man made a presentation to the City Council about setting up a slaughterhouse. The problems seemed to be in dealing with the leftovers along with all the rules and regulations involved in our State. At that time, these seemed insurmountable. But today, if everyone would get on board to make this happen, we could have a wonderful industry creating many jobs.
If you look on the internet about slaughterhouse: “Waste materials such as bone, lard or tallow, are sent to a rendering plant. Also, lard and tallow can be used for the production of biodiesel or heating oil. The waste water, consisting of blood and fecal matter, generated by the slaughtering process is sent to a waste water treatment plant.”
Questions to ponder. Where is there a rendering plant? Could one be established in this area? How about production of biodiesel and heating oil? Is that something that can be created here? Then how much would the wastewater treatment plant be affected by the remains?
Her advertising pieces give the impression of a strong woman with a spine. I found Heather Pollen to be a friendly, gracious woman. She’s smart and she advertises herself as the only Nonpartisan Candidate. I think there may be a place for her in politics in the future. If she were elected right now, I think she would be the type to go along to get along. I think her “spine” needs more development because she is very naive about politics in this County.
