March 28, 2024
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Cris Kaminskas has been part of the Liberty Lake City Council since January 2010. The Ohio native is currently serving as mayor pro tem and is running unopposed in this month’s general election.

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A Cup of Joe: Continuing service
10/28/2015 3:24:39 PM

By Craig Howard
Splash Contributor 

As Cris Kaminskas faces her third race for a seat on the Liberty Lake City Council since 2011, the tension this fall is not nearly what it was in 2009. 

That year, she faced off against Josh Beckett for the position vacated by Neal Olander. When preliminary election results came in, Kaminskas was trailing by a mere 55 votes. By the time the last ballots were counted, Beckett was declared the winner. The final margin was 114 votes.

Kaminskas had faced another competitive quest for council earlier that year as one of seven applicants for another open seat. That May, Ryan Romney was appointed to fill the chair once occupied by Brian Sayrs. 

Undaunted and still hoping to serve, Kaminskas' chance came when Patrick Jenkins, who had served on the governing board since 2003, moved out of state as part of a job transfer. 

"I am persistent, right?" Kaminskas told those around the dais when she was interviewed as one of four candidates for Jenkins' position in January 2010. 

Kaminskas was appointed to fill the remainder of Jenkins' term and ran unopposed for a full term in November 2011. This autumn, the current mayor pro tem will again face a void of competition in her bid for re-election. 

Born and raised in the suburbs of Cincinnati, Kaminskas earned her bachelor's degree in psychology from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, before making progress on her master's in business administration at the University of Tampa.

Cris, her husband, Scott, and their son, Kyle, moved to Liberty Lake in 2006 after she accepted a job as a senior program manager with KeyTronic Corp. Overall, Kaminskas has spent 21 years in the electronics manufacturing field on the program management side. 

In her spare time, Kaminskas enjoys playing the piano, reading and trail running. She is parlaying her trademark persistence into a goal of running a 50K ultra-trail race next year.    

Q: You are running for re-election without a challenger this month. What was your reaction when you found out three of the council races as well as the mayor's bid for re-election would appear alone on the ballot? 

A: I was obviously relieved when I discovered that I was unopposed. The time I don't have to spend campaigning is time I can work on council business. I like to think we're unopposed because we're doing a good job.  However, the reality is that there just aren't enough people who are interested in serving or who have enough time to serve. I recently calculated that, on average, I spend more than 40 hours a month on council activities. That's time away from my family, so I understand why people don't want to make that kind of commitment for four years at a time. What scares me about having so few people interested is that we could end up with someone elected to a position - council or mayor - who is totally unqualified for the position. An unopposed mayoral election is the scariest - what if a qualified individual doesn't run? 

Q: What do you recall about your first campaign for City Council in 2009 when you faced Josh Beckett?

A: The campaign between Josh and I was very friendly. We talked often and discussed the fact that it was too bad that we were running against each other. I remember the candidate forum for that election well. We didn't take jabs at each other and shared a few quiet laughs together. I enjoyed serving with him, and we're still good friends today.

Q: After you narrowly lost that fall, did you know that you would run again or, in your case, throw your name into the hat again for a council appointment?

A: I had been attending council meetings on a regular basis since interviewing for an appointed position earlier that year when Ryan Romney was appointed. I actually may have attended more meetings during that time period than some of the sitting council members. After the election, I was weighing my options, including volunteering with Friends of Pavillion Park. However, I continued to attend meetings to stay informed. Not long after that, I got wind that Patrick Jenkins would be resigning due to an out-of- state move, so I jumped at the chance to try again.  

Q: What was your first year like as a representative of the City Council?

A: The paperwork was quite a surprise. Listening from the audience at a meeting is quite different than reviewing meeting packets that can range from 15 to over 300 pages long. I have to say, though, that 2010 was a hard year to come on board with regards to the budget. We were in a recession, and 2010 was the year we implemented the 6 percent utility tax, reduced library hours, closed Trailhead over the winter, laid off Mollie Thola and Ron Knudsen, all while trying to figure out how to not take the council raises that the salary commission recommended. The council is bound by the commission's decision either way.  Luckily, it turned out the required quorum was not present at their meeting so their vote approving raises was not valid. 

Q: You've seen quite a bit of change around the dais since you've joined council. How difficult is it to establish a collaborative energy when so much shuffling is taking place? 

A: The great thing about our council is that we all have a shared purpose. I strongly believe that every member through the years has served in order to be a good steward of the community's money while maintaining and improving the service levels that we have. That is what unites us all. Though we may disagree on how to do that, for the most part we maintain mutual respect and trust among the council members. It's so important to be able to voice our opinions, whether it be concurring or dissenting, without feeling like we are going to be judged by each other.

Q: Speaking of change at City Hall, your father, Bob Moore, was appointed to City Council in 2014 after a tenure on the planning commission. What has it been like to be a fellow leader with your dad?  

A: Serving with my dad has actually been a good bonding experience. We are a lot alike, but not as much as I thought since we quite often cast our votes opposite each other! We really don't talk about upcoming agenda items very often. Now and then, I'll stop over and we may share our points of view or discuss some merits of an issue. That's not by design, that's just how we are - when we're together outside of council, it's family time. I actually find myself discussing issues with my son, Kyle, more than I do with my dad. Kyle has been known to call me on the way to school to report that someone is doing donuts next to the baseball fields, that there is a broken sprinkler in Pavillion Park or that he corralled a stray dog and can I please call SCRAPS to help. Maybe we need to recruit him to City Council when my dad retires.

Q: Council addressed the long-standing sign code with several votes last month. How do you feel that discussion will affect the city moving forward?

A: The council was in agreement on all but one proposed change to the sign code - the provision to allow electronically changeable message signs in the business corridor (Appleway, Country Vista, Liberty Lake Road) failed 4-2.  I'm sure the topic will come up again as we've been talking about the sign code for many years. However, there were no businesses that came to speak for or against this change.  Decisions we make today will affect how Liberty Lake will look many years into the future. We need to make sure we balance the needs of our businesses with those of the people who live here - that can be a tough thing to do.

Q: Speaking of deliberated issues, you have spoken out against the utility tax in the past. Do you foresee the debate over this revenue source emerging again? 

A: Our policy is to review the utility tax every year during the budget cycle so we'll be discussing it again the near future. With close to $20 million in streets projects scheduled over the next six years, not including the Henry Road interchange, it's important to have a dedicated revenue source to take care of our roads. Property taxes primarily go to the library and police department and sales tax supports the rest of the general budget. We still need to be able to maintain our roads even if the economy goes through another downturn. Continued growth in Liberty Lake means more need for street maintenance and therefore more expense. Continued growth also means more utility tax revenue to help with the increased expenses. If there is an opportunity to reduce even part of the utility tax to help our residents and businesses, we need to look at that very seriously. I serve on the finance committee and have already asked for some preliminary figures associated with reducing one or all of the categories by at least 0.5 percent. 

Q: How has serving as mayor pro tem differed from a standard council role?

A: I've really enjoyed being mayor pro tem and have felt so much more connected to what is going on. I have regular meetings with our city administrator in preparation for each meeting, and I've been more involved in community outreach than I had been before. When I ran for office in 2009, one of my goals was to improve communication with the residents. This spring and summer, I spent almost every Saturday manning the city's booth at the Farmers Market talking to people about upcoming or past projects and getting their input. I also started a Facebook page this year where I provide updates on each council meeting, upcoming events and host questions and concerns from community members. We've even had some input there from planning commission and staff members when they have answers that I don't have. I've gotten a lot of good feedback from council members about this format - they're starting to feel more connected themselves. I'm also very fortunate to have gone through an amazing job change in 2013 which allows me more flexibility in my schedule to attend more affairs on behalf of the city. I really enjoy being able to represent Liberty Lake at these events.

Q: Finally, what do you enjoy most about being a citizen and leader in Liberty Lake? 

A: That's a tough question because I'm so proud of so many things in our city. I love that our parks and trails make it easy for people of all ages and abilities to get out.  Friends of Pavillion Park makes sure that we have continuous family friendly events throughout the summer. Our schools are great and people care about their community. The only thing that would make me even more proud would be for the voters to approve funding of the pool and community center. What a fantastic addition that would be to Liberty Lake. 

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