GOLD BEACH – Three candidates filed for seats on the Curry County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday for the May 15 election, two for Position 2 and one for Position 3.

David Brock Smith of Port Orford and Randy Dubbs Dowler of Brookings filed for Position 2, now held by George Rhodes of Brookings. Rhodes has said he hasn’t decided whether he will be a candidate for re-election.

Susan Brown of Gold Beach filed for Position 3, now held by Bill Waddle of Brookings. Waddle filed for re-election last week.

Brown was Curry County Director of Economic and Community Development before the current commissioners closed that office, combining it with their office staff in the budget for the fiscal year that began July 1.

“Through the Curry County Economic Development, we were able to work with dozens and dozens of businesses, successfully creating and retaining more than 300 jobs in Curry County,” Brown said Tuesday. “We brought in more than $5 million in the county through grants, business loans and programs.”

Brown said she has 4 1/2 years experience in economic development, has been a grant writer for 19 years, and was a business owner in Nevada for 15 years, where she was a member of the town council and was a member of the economic development board.

“I have successfully planned and written strategic plans for organizations and business marketing plans. I’ve got relationships developed with local and state government agencies,” she said.

“Curry County is a pretty unique place,” Brown said. “It’s got a lot of assets. We’ve got to work on using the assets we have. I think I could be a strong leader in the county. I have a lot of resources, a lot of expertise.”

Smith is a third generation resident of Curry County.

“I have deep roots and care about the future. I believe I can make a difference,” he said.

Smith is president of the Port Orford City Council, a member of the Port Orford-Langlois School Board, and Port Orford & North Curry County Chamber of Commerce Board where he was the president for six years. He also serves on a number of other local and county boards and committees. He is also manager of a family restaurant.

“There are lots of exciting things happening in North County,” Smith said. Congressman “Peter DeFazio is working to open and loosen restrictions on logging, something I campaigned on a year ago. We’re still looking for a clean energy project. I am vice chair of the Clean Energy Project for the county.”

He said the county is coming into serious financial crisis and he is very familiar with budgets.

“I’m young, energetic, have been involved in public services the last eight or nine years of my life,” Smith said. “I want to bring that to the county. I think we can all work together. It’s not going to take one person or three commissioners, It’s going to take all of us.”

Dowler has a chemistry degree from the University of California San Diego and worked for Scripts Institute of Oceanography after college. He built surfboards for 10 years, then started a surfboard wax company. He currently operates Blinds and Draperies Express, building window coverings.

He says the county is in a crisis.

“With that crisis, there’s also an opportunity,” he said.

Dowler said raising taxes is not the solution.

“The problem is we are a retirement community. If you raise property taxes those people will leave. My dad moved here because property taxes are low. My dad changed residence from Oregon to Nevada, which no longer has income taxes. What will happen here will shut off the flow of taxes for retirees who move here and motivate the wealthiest to change their tax home,” Dowler said.

He said there is no timber here because it has been logged out for some time.

“In terms of natural resources, there is no opportunity,” Dowler said.

“The future is tourism. You have to have something unique that others don’t have. One is to start a surf park and make artificial reefs. That could get people to move here,” he said. “Artificial reefs don’t cost so much to build. The bottleneck is to jump through bureaucratic hoops,” Dowler said.

He said as a commissioner, he could jump through those hoops.

County Commission Position 1 is held by David Itzen, who is currently completing his second year on the board. That position will not appear on the ballot until 2014.

Sheriff John Bishop filed for re-election on Oct. 11.

Deborah Crumley, who was appointed as county treasurer on Oct. 11, filed for election to that office on Oct. 25. 

Other county offices on the ballot in 2012 are County Clerk and County Assessor.

Candidates have until March 6 to file for the May 15 primary election. If there is no clear winner at that election, a runoff will be held at the November general election.