Candidate for Whitefish City Council Nathan Dugan
The Daily Inter Lake reached out to Whitefish City Council candidates running in the Nov. 7 municipal election. The information below was provided by the candidates and edited for spelling, punctuation and space.
Name: Nathan Dugan
Age: 33
Family: Partner, Mallory, plus four dogs and two cats
Occupation: Physical Therapist
Community involvement: Co-founder and president of Shelter WF, member of the city of Whitefish's Climate Action Plan Committee, member of State Housing Task Force
Why are you the right candidate for the position?
My campaign for Whitefish City Council is about ensuring a friendly, welcoming, and socioeconomically diverse community well into the future. Empty homes and fewer year-round residents will be a serious threat to the vibrancy and authenticity of our community over the coming decades if we don't reverse the trend. I'm an innovative collaborator with a track record of getting things done in the affordable housing space. I'll bring this energy to the council, addressing housing, traffic, public transportation, and more. My community work has earned my campaign endorsements from Montana Conservation Voters and Run for Something.
As the city updates its growth policy, what is your vision for Whitefish’s future?
The next council will shape our growth policy and zoning, with expertise needed to create the right incentives and programs to create affordable housing options — both at the market rate and in the deed-restricted, permanently affordable market that serves an important group of residents. Fortunately or unfortunately, people will keep moving here, and we can't prevent those with the means from doing so, but we can control growth and make it more equitable. I envision neighborhoods mostly within the current city boundaries with full-time residents having efficient transit. I'm excited for the process where we'll have the opportunity to really dig in as a community to plan our future growth in a way that will work better for everyone.
What role should the city take in addressing housing?
Our city must take a proactive approach to our housing crisis. While some progress has been made, more work remains — we can address this issue with much greater efficiency. We should use pilot programs to test housing affordability measures and evaluate effectiveness, rather than putting laws on the books that don't work and aren't re-evaluated for years. We need to update our zoning based on our coming growth policy update, limit urban sprawl, and create short-term assistance programs like rental support, property tax relief, and down payment assistance, among others. A multifaceted strategy will help address the housing crisis effectively.
How should the city manage public safety needs amid rapid growth?
Our fire department needs a ladder truck, and this should be a priority for the city — it's scheduled to be ordered in a few years, and we need to ensure that this happens. Not only would the addition improve safety, but the absence of a ladder truck is a frequently cited excuse that negatively impacts our ability to produce more affordable homes for full-time residents. In terms of all public safety needs more generally, the city needs to continue to invest the necessary resources to maintain at least the current level of service provided by public safety professionals.
What other issues should the city be addressing?
In my conversations with residents at their doors over the past couple of months, a consistent issue that I've heard is a desire for better collaboration between the city and residents and a general feeling by some that the city doesn't value or take in feedback. The ways that the city engages with residents can be improved. I'm committed to making things more easily digestible and to improving the city's methods for public engagement. Additionally, Whitefish is unique in that it has an unpaid Council and mayor — this is imperative to change though it is up to the voters.