To the editor:
I am writing in support of Commissioner Claire Hall’s candidacy to retain her seat as Lincoln County commissioner. I have had the honor of working with Claire in the past while reporting for the Newport News Times, through other organizations, and most recently as a friend.
Claire is and continues to be one of the most prominent faces in securing services and shelter for Lincoln County’s unhoused population. Project Homeless Connect has served as a godsend for many — from documentation to haircuts to hygiene projects to imperative contacts — Claire was at the forefront of the event’s creation.
But it does not stop there. Claire votes to reduce the number of short-term rentals. She understands that to maintain a workforce and to keep housing costs affordable, short-term rental businesses must not eat up houses in the coastal communities. As a nurse who formerly worked in the county, I can attest to the difficulty incoming doctors and medical professionals have when trying to relocate to the area. When inventory is low this drives out the American Dream for anyone of moderate means, let alone low income. And this includes out Veterans.
As a counter point, Claire Hall has championed hundreds of units for the workforce. Many people occupy these in such areas as: Blackberry Hill in Toledo (mostly Veterans), Surf View Village in Newport, and Twenty-Fifth Street Apartments in Lincoln City (and there are many more).
Her connections bring funding and are imperative to the county. Claire Hall is a known quantity of every level of government. She understands the county’s needs in and out. And she has exhibited strong and steady leadership against the often overdramatic and tribal landscape of Lincoln County politics. She and her work deserve nothing less than reelection.
I support Claire in what she has accomplished for Lincoln County and for the quality of human she is. She deserves nothing less than re-election, and neither does Lincoln County.
- Kendall S. Cable/Eugene
