Letters to the Editor
Eckert throws hat in ring
Dear Editor:
My name is Greg Eckert; I am announcing my candidacy for the District Five Supervisor’s seat for Mono County.
Amongst several other issues, it is due to the recent lack of representation (i.e. redistricting and the lack of Crowley lake fireworks funding) of Mammoth Lakes voters that has caused me to run for this supervisory seat.
I first moved to Mammoth with my parents in 1963 (we call it BC for before condominiums). It was a different time and a much different place.
In the years gone by, Mammoth has gone from a Mom and Pop community to a much more diverse resort.
There have been many changes for the better, but the biggest loss has been the trend for people to leave in their 20s and 30s to pursue careers and “get on with their lives.” We all have had great friends who have left the area after six, ten or more years.
I will promote the creation of full-time head of household employment in both Mammoth and the surrounding areas. We need more jobs that can put food on the table and Sorels in the mud room for a family of four. Government has done a good job of increasing the activities for our young people in the last fifty years, but has hampered, in many ways, the opportunities for their parents. This needs to be addressed if we are going to have the long-term continuity that is the best cement for a great community.
For me, the main problem faced by many of those who have left is the lack of full time employment. Few have been blessed with a forty-hour paycheck. Most struggle to get by with two or three twenty hour jobs. This leaves many showering for their next shift instead of going out and enjoying the things that brought them here.
The Mountain does a wonderful job with the cards they are dealt but cannot carry all the water themselves. We need to diversify our employment base to provide more clean, family supporting jobs.
As the campaign progresses, I look forward to sharing my views and ideas with the voters of District Five and the overall community. I hope those with similar ideas will contact me at their convenience at 937.7569 to help build the tool kit to make this work.
Greg Eckert
Mammoth Lakes
