Sat Feb 11 2012
By Ken Lahmers
Aurora Advocate editor
AURORA — Three candidates are running for Councilman Joe Kastelic’s at-large seat on Aurora Council — Kastelic, Richard Duncan and Brady Krebs.
Meanwhile, political newcomer Fred Rote is challenging Ward 1 Councilman Jim Vaca in the only other contested council race.
Kastelic, 53, has been a councilman for 12 years and a firefighter for the city of Pepper Pike for 30 years.
Duncan, 56, currently serves on Kent’s board of building appeals, and is a Realtor and real estate investor. He has not held a political office before, but his name did appear on the 2008 U.S. presidential ballot.
Krebs, 37, has run an Edward Jones financial services office in Aurora for the past several years.
At a recent forum sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Northern Portage County, the candidates touted their experience in different areas as reasons for the public to vote for them.
Kastelic cited his 12 years on council and knowledge of city issues, Krebs touted his business savvy and Duncan cited his training and experience as a city planner.
Krebs said increasing business and tax revenue is a major goal of his, Duncan cited the need to look for “productive uses” for city land and Kastelic cited the need to be “conservative on spending” and “work with colleagues to come up with good ideas.”
Vaca, a retired meatcutter and meat manager for Heinen’s Supermarkets, has served as Ward 1 councilman for 14 years.
He said one of the biggest issues facing Aurora residents is quality of life.
“We need to ensure each citizen is provided with a quality standard of living,” he said. “It is necessary to ensure that the mayor and his administration are held accountable for the high cost taxes being paid by the residents.”
Rote said finances should be the city’s biggest concern, “and reducing spending without cutting important services is imperative.”
He added better planning for the future and fiscal conservation should be priorities, too, and citizen input should be a major contributing factor in achieving these goals.
Councilman Carl Rausch is unopposed in Ward 3 and Councilman James Fisher is unopposed in Ward 5.
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