Pleasantview resident Dave Nelson has announced he's seeking a seat on the Douglas County Board of Commissioners.

Nelson is seeking the seat now held by Commissioner Jim Baushke.

Nelson, 63, is a five-year resident of Carson Valley and founded the Good Government Group of Douglas County.

"I'm very concerned about the county's finances," he said. "I believe I have the background in finance to bring us out of this more quickly."

Nelson, a registered Republican, said he favors limited government but believes zoning laws need to be enforced.

"I believe the government that governs best, governs least," he said. "But I believe in enforcing zoning laws unless there's a good reason to change them."

Nelson has been critical of county decisions, first on the route of Muller Parkway and then on the approval of the redevelopment district in northern Douglas County.

"Those chickens are coming home to roost," he said of redevelopment. "The county has given away more than they have to. Anyone who thinks Jay Timon isn't going to build 30,000 square feet of retail space for $24.7 million is in for a surprise."

He said county officials are not doing enough to protect residents from shoddy workmanship.

"I don't think the citizens of the county have been represented that well in the past," he said. "I don't think they understand the transitions between neighborhoods. They built condos right up against single family homes. They need to require the land owner to build a buffer before starting the condos."

A Realtor for 15 years, Nelson gradated from Cal Poly Pomona in 1971 with a business administration degree. He got his brokers' license after college. He has been an appraiser and an underwriter. He worked for Ticor Mortgage Insurance as national director of claims, where he helped develop claims system that led to more computer work.

He wrote much of the forecasting software for Del Monte's frozen food division and worked for Syntex Labs in Palo Alto. Nelson said he has been a consultant for Intel, PacBell and Fujitsu before moving to the Carson Valley, where he has lived for five years.

Nelson said he favors transparent government, which was one of the reasons for founding the good government group.

"My primary goal is to unwaveringly represent the citizens in these challenging economic times," Nelson said in a statement. "Recent county budget discussions have shown that the taxpayer-voter needs steadfast representation."

Nelson said that if elected, he would hold regular town hall meetings to solicit citizen input outside of the constraints of the commissioner board meetings. For more information, go to www.4davenelson.com.