DeGard declares for commissioner

The race for central Kitsap County commissioner just got a little more crowded as consultant Paulette DeGard announced Thursday she will challenge incumbent Tim Botkin.

First, DeGard will have to defeat fellow declared GOP candidate Patty Lent, a Bremerton woman who works in the travel industry.

“I am running for this position because it is obvious to me that there is a leadership void in Kitsap County,” said DeGard in a press release. “If you look at the record, you will see the current District 3 commissioner pays lip service to economic development and to the environment.”

DeGard has lived in the Northwest for 20 years and Kitsap County for three years.

Her resume says she owns her own consulting firm, started a management training school in northern Poland, managed a start-up manufacturing company, and has worked with Boeing and the U.S. Navy.

DeGard added one highly visible and successful civic project to her resume recently.

She was the general coordinator for the massive KitsapKids Playground at the Fairgrounds which coordinated thousands of volunteers to build the $250,000 project.

She is a member of the Silverdale Rotary, Bremerton and Silverdale chambers of commerce, the Admiral Theatre Foundation board of directors, and a graduate of Leadership Kitsap.

But it is apparent, she doesn’t think that incumbent Botkin is doing his job.

“What has he (Botkin) actually accomplished in the last four years?” she asked. “We hear a lot of talk about ‘Smart Growth,’ but it is yet to be defined, and that lack of definition has continued to polarize the citizens of Kitsap County.

“The time for talk is over. It’s time for action,” she said.

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