Town Hall debates tonight

Residents will get a chance to meet the candidates during a special town hall debate. Both Douglas County commission and state assembly candidates will speak at the event, scheduled for 6-8 p.m. tonight at the CVIC Hall in Minden.

"Many people don't know the candidates but certainly want to make an informed decision. We invite the community to participate, ask questions and meet all the candidates. Every commission candidate is participating," said Renea Louie, executive director of the Business Council of Douglas County.

"We provide the forum for the community to understand the candidates' goals and objectives, learn about their personalities and why they're running," Louie said.

The doors open at 5:15 p.m. and refreshments will be served. There is no charge for this event, she said.

A total of nine candidates are running for the two offices, so the evening will be split relative to those races with a brief intermission on the hour.

Each candidate will be given up to three minutes for opening remarks. The moderator will then ask specific questions of all candidates.

Questions rrom the audience will be filtered through a moderator to eliminate any offensive, repeat or irrelevant material.

Each candidate will have up to 3 minutes for a final closing speech.

The following is a list of the candidates, divided by office.

• James Settelmeyer, Barbara Smallwood, Rick Gardner and John Dicks will be facing each other in the primary, all Republican candidates for the District 39 State Assembly seat to be vacated by Lynn Hettrick.

• Incumbent David Brady is facing Lloyd Higuera for the District 2 commission seat. Both are Republicans.

• Foothills resident Nancy McDermid is facing Janet Murphy in the race for the District 4 commission seat, soon to be vacated by Commissioner Tim Smith. All are Republicans.

The event is sponsored by the Business Council of Douglas County in partnership with the Chamber of Commerce and The Record-Courier.

Susie Vasquez can be reached at svasquez@recordcourier.com or 782-5121, ext. 211.

What: Town Hall Debate

When: 6-8 p.m. Wednesday

Where: CIVC Hall in Minden