Image: Pesels
Hiring with intention is not the same as hiring with impact. You can post on a job board and add an EEO footer—but if your systems, language, or workflows aren’t built to be inclusive, you’re not signaling trust. You’re broadcasting friction. People with disabilities aren’t just looking for a paycheck—they’re assessing risk. In the gaps between your form fields, your follow-ups, and your feedback loops, they’re sensing whether you’ve designed with them in mind. Attracting talent in this space isn’t a campaign. It’s a design system. And it starts before a single resume arrives.
Photo via Pexels
Starting a business close to home isn't just about profit margins or quarterly projections. It’s about planting a flag in the soil you walk every day, saying this is mine and I believe in it. The road to entrepreneurship in your own community requires more than hustle; it demands clarity, patience, and a deeper understanding of the people you want to serve. To thrive, you’ve got to weave yourself into the fabric of the neighborhood, becoming both familiar and essential in the eyes of your customers.
The ‘Citizens Conservation Land Bank’ was voted into existence in 1990, 34 years ago, with the mandate to “preserve in perpetuity” areas in the county that have environmental, agricultural, aesthetic, cultural, scientific, historic, scenic or low-intensity recreational value and to protect existing and future sources of potable water. These land acquisitions are funded by a Real Estate Excise Tax, authorized by the voters of San Juan County.
Over the past 31 years, the Land Bank has acquired (ownership) of 5000 acres of land in San Juan County, per the Land Bank’s brochure. The Land Bank has acquired more property than the size of Shaw Island! (Shaw Is. has 4,928 acres, per Wikipedia.org)
Most, if not all of the Land Bank acreage, is exempt from co. property taxes.
This means county property taxes that would have been paid from the acquired ‘Land Bank property’, are now shifted to the rest of the county taxpayers to pay in perpetuity!
Please, vote NO in November for the SJC Land Bank renewal proposition.
Enough is Enough,
Paul Dossett
Kari McVeigh has sought and received the endorsement of the San Juan County Democratic Party.
In doing so, she has demonstrated her newness to San Juan County and that she lacks the local knowledge and background about what the citizens of San Juan County thought to be an important condition written into article 5 of the San Juan County Home Rule Charter:
5.32: “Qualified voters of the County shall nominate candidates for the County Council. Such candidates shall be nominated by countywide primary election for non-partisan office in the same manner as candidates for other County offices”.
SJI LIBRARY SPENDING
Compares SJI : Orcas : Lopez
| Lopez | |||
| 1 | Director | $99,874 | Salary & Benefits |
| 2 | Assistant Director | $73,842 | Salary & Benefits |
| 3 | Youth Services Manager | $52,188 | Salary & Benefits |
| 4 | Collection & Circ Libr | $82,403 | Salary & Benefits |
| 5 | Community Alchemist | $65,232 | Salary & Benefits |
| 6 | Ops & Facs Assoc | $35,155 | Salary & Benefits |
| 7 | Collection & Circ Assoc | $74,061 | Salary & Benefits |
| 8 | Creative Programs Assoc | $33,024 | Salary & Benefits |
| Orcas | |||
| 1 | Director | $153,305 | Salary & Benefits |
| 2 | Assistant Director | $78,685 | Salary & Benefits |
| 3 | Public Serv Librarian 1 | $72,480 | Salary & Benefits |
| 4 | Public Serv Librarian 2 | $41,500 | Salary & Benefits |
| 5 | Public Serv Librarian 3 | $65,110 | Salary & Benefits |
| 6 | Systems Librarian | $49,730 | Salary & Benefits |
| 7 | Public Serv Librarian 4 | $69,300 | Salary & Benefits |
| 8 | 3 Library Associates | $55,750 | Salary & Benefits |
| San Juan | |||
| 1 | Director | $175,730 | Salary & Benefits |
| 2 | Assoc II Youth Cataloger | $65,890.00 | Salary |
| 3 | Assoc II Adult Cataloger | $54,130.00 | Salary |
| 4 | Assoc II Outreach | $59,400.00 | Salary |
| 5 | Assoc II Adult Programs | $49,420.00 | Salary |
| 6 | Youth Service Manager | $89,240.00 | Salary |
| 7 | Assoc II Youth Serv | $61,810.00 | Salary |
| 8 | Asst Director/Adult Services Manager | $78,650.00 | Salary |
| 9 | Sssoc II ILL/Collections | $54,360.00 | Salary |
| 10 | Bookkeeper | $49,950.00 | Salary |
| 11 | Circulation Manager | $84,350.00 | Salary |
| 12 | Circ Assistant I & Circ Assoc | $50,010.00 | Salary |
| 13 | Assoc II Admin Assistant | $37,170.00 | Salary |
| 14 | 2 Assoc I Public Service Associate | $37,780.00 | Salary |
| 15 | Fundraising Associate | $27,300.00 | Salary |
| 16 | Early Learning Associate (contract) | $27,400.00 | Salary |
| Benefits: | $320,780.00 | Benefits for above | |
| 17 | IT Administrator | $129,590 | Salary & Benefits |
| 18 | Janitor | $37,000 | Salary |
| 19 | Maintenance Worker | $30,590 | Salary & Benefits |
Annual Tax Revenue
Lopez $ 664,000
Orcas $1,045,300
SJI $1,572,000
SJI $2,572,000 (If Levy Passes)
It has interesting to see the candidates for our non-partisan county council. I’ll be evaluating the candidates based on their statements and platforms.
Here’s what I’m looking for in a council representative.
