Premium ContentMouse over Home then click on Premium Content for information.The chairman of the Sarpy County Board faces challenges from two rural Papillion residents who want to eliminate perks for elected officials and bring tax relief to rural landowners.
Don Kelly, a retired Air Force colonel, and Melissa Jarecke, a real estate broker, filed last week to run in the Republican primary May 15 against board Chairman Rusty Hike. The winner of the primary advances to the Nov. 6 election. So far, no Democrats have filed.
Hike, 49, previously served on the Bellevue Planning Commission and the Bellevue Board of Adjustment. An associate broker at CBSHome Real Estate, he has worked in real estate sales since 1982. Hike lives on an acreage south of Bellevue and was elected to the county board in 2008.
"Rusty is a nice young man, but I don't think he has been making the impact he could," said Jarecke, 70. "Some people are not very happy with his performance, so they thought maybe it was time for new ideas and a new face."
Jarecke (pronounced juh-RESS-key) is an agent with NP Dodge Real Estate. She has been in the real estate business for 44 years and also is a well-known local actress who has starred in a number of locally produced movies.
Kelly, 55, is a senior program manager in the Bellevue office of an Ohio-based defense contracting company. He serves on the Learning Community Council and the Bellevue Chamber of Commerce board of directors.
Kelly said he wants to lower the county's property tax rate and reduce spending.
The county needs to link raises to merit and performance, not automatically give longevity and cost-of-living adjustments as it always has done, he said.
Jarecke said the tax assessments of rural properties and many individual homes are excessive.
Last summer, in a split decision of the board, Hike voted to reject a referee's recommendation to lower the property valuations for hundreds of rural landowners and use Assessor Dan Pittman's higher numbers. Hike said Pittman had used a well-reasoned approach.
Jarecke and Kelly both oppose the free health insurance given to Sarpy County elected officials, another hot-button topic for voters. Other county employees pay a portion of their insurance premiums.
"It's an issue I have to investigate more, but I don't think people should get special treatment," Jarecke said. "Everything has to be fair."
In December, Hike voted to freeze board members' part-time salaries of $25,000 a year through 2014 but to continue the long-standing practice of giving them free single or family health insurance for at least another three years.
Kelly said the County Board needs to be careful about how it spends money.
"It's not about Rusty. I won't criticize him," Kelly said. "I'm just offering people a choice. I think I can make a contribution. For 29 years in the military I served my country, and now I want to serve my county."
Besides Hike, two other County Board seats are on the November ballot.
Tom Richards, a Bellevue Democrat, is seeking a second term in District 3, and Jim Nekuda, a Bellevue Republican, has filed to run for District 4 after being appointed to serve out the term of Pat Thomas, who died in 2010.
Public defender Tom Strigenz, a Republican, has filed for a third term.
Challengers have until 5 p.m. March 1 to file for the primary.
Contact the writer: 402-444-1056, john.ferak@owh.com
Copyright ©2012 Omaha World-Herald®. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, displayed or redistributed for any purpose without permission from the Omaha World-Herald.
