McCasky aims to remain focused on the issues

If elected to a second term as county commissioner, Kevin McCasky said he'll be focused on infrastructure projects, including completing "the beltway."

"It is critical for both transportation and mobility elements and planning to complete the beltway, to extend the Northwest Parkway through Jefferson County," McCasky said. "I believe it's critical for transportation purposes and significant economic benefits to all of Jefferson County in the next 30 years. It's critical to complete that connection as soon as possible."

McCasky, whose re-election campaign officially kicked off last November, said his second priority if re-elected would be to come up with a plan to address the expansion of the jail and the courthouse.

County leaders say the jail is at capacity, and the courthouse’s lack of space will need to be addressed, as the state has mandated two new judges on July 1, and three additional judges on July 1, 2009.

"We literally have a quarter of a billion dollars-plus in capital construction, infrastructure needs, and that doesn't come close to addressing other transportation capacity mitigation measures that we really need to address," McCasky said.

McCasky said he has ideas on how to pay for these things when the county budget is actually decreasing, but he doesn't want to preempt any ideas from the Citizens Budget Review Panel, which will meet later this year to propose ideas on these problems.

"I would like them to have a no-boundaries approach to how they would recommend solving this significant capital construction/infrastructure price tag that we have looming," McCasky said.

McCasky said he has "solid" support in District 2, notably in the business community. He said he reaches out to officials at the federal, state and local levels, regardless of party persuasion or issue, to get things done.

"There are numerous needs we have to balance for our citizens, and serving our citizens means putting aside a lot of minor differences to reach a good public policy outcome that has a positive impact," McCasky said.

Unaffiliated voters make up a solid third of Jeffco's electorate, and McCasky said he's received a lot of support from Democrats in the three races he's been in so far — two for assessor and one for county commissioner — and wooing independents is about working with all people to get things done.

"I'm going to continue to reach out and find solutions that best fit our citizens and work with whoever is willing to roll up their sleeves and work hard," McCasky said.

Contact AJ Vicens at aj@evergreenco.com, and check www.columbinecourier.com for updates and breaking news.