Greene challenges supervisor Connelly
OROVILLE >> The run for Butte County’s District 1 will challenge Bill Connelly this year with newcomer Ian Greene, another Oroville local.
After over a decade in office in his hometown Oroville, incumbent Connelly faces opposition from a new candidate in
the March 3 election. Ian Greene, a Democrat, was also raised in Oroville and said he hopes to bring “something new” to the district.
Challenger: PG&E responsibility
Greene, who describes himself as a local care provider, said his key issues include getting independence from PG&E, the “aging crisis” (a rising number of senior residents with fewer available local providers)
in the district and wage disparities among care providers and in Oroville.
Born in Los Angeles, Greene was raised in Oroville when his grandparents moved to the city to start a dry-cleaning business, which his father took over while he was in grade school. He studied at the San Francisco Academy of Art, and although he moved several times to Oregon and New Orleans, for over a decade he has continued to “always come back to Oroville.”
Greene has been active in local unions for years as a care provider, and said this is where his experience in local politics began. He said
he hopes to use his experience to “actually listen to people and offer real solutions.”
Demanding responsibility from PG&E is his greatest concern, knowing a number of people affected within and outside Oroville. He hopes to represent the “huge voting block” of Concow and Berry Creek, worried about future fires and ongoing issues with forest management in their regions.
Greene admitted to his low level of experience in county government, but said “I’m ready to learn.”
“Everyone has to start somewhere,” he said.
Incumbent: A focus on public safety
Incumbent Connelly has
been in office for over a decade — “I’m good at what I do,” he was quick to add.
Connelly’s Oroville roots go back to 1915 on his maternal family’s side — born in Marysville, he attended school in the city through high school. After joining the Air Force at 19, he later returned to buy a janitorial business, race motorcycles and settle down with his new family.
Over time, Connelly became interested in local government. After the Oroville Dam crisis and the Camp Fire, he is most concerned with improving public safety, because “we want our loved ones to be safe.”
“We don’t want them to worry going to the grocery store,” he said.
To that end, he is also focused on finishing the
Highway 70 improvement project to “prevent more deaths” and relicensing with the state. It will take “$10 million to get five lanes” he said, of which the district is $7 million short. However, Yuba and Sutter Counties are also in support of the project, he added.
He does have concern for the ongoing housing shortage issues in Oroville, often caused by high building costs, which have led to staffing problems on projects like Oroville Hospital, due to lack of housing for the needed number of workers.
“The stigma in Oroville is doctors don’t live there,” Connelly said. “I think if people understood its natural beauty, they’d move there.”
To that end, he said he
recognizes the problem of bringing in more businesses that offer higher wages to the rural area.
“I wish we could attract more new … innovative start-ups,” Connelly said. But first, he is focused on more improvements to public safety.
Like Greene, Connelly recognized the concerns of constituents about fire prevention and brush burns. He said he is also hoping to push for better forest management to protect existing homes — “you have to learn to protect your home” — as well as the preservation of Paradise’s water district.
“Everyone should be concerned about PG&E,” he said. “I think they put corporate profit ahead while maintenance is lax. They don’t fix what they have.”
Of working in public office after 15 years, Connelly said “it’s like, we’re the guards. We’re setting a budget.”
“There’s always something new to learn,” he said.
“Experience counts. I’m not perfect, but I’m really good at what I do… and I get along with everybody.”
Upcoming election
Greene remains Connelly’s only opponent in this race. The election for all supervisor seats up for reelection in Butte County will take place Tuesday, March 3 by mail-in ballot.