Editorial: Howell gets Eagle’s endorsement over McIntosh in District 5

Jim Howell is the unanimous choice of the Eagle Editorial Board to retain his seat on the Sedgwick County Commission.

That may surprise some of our longtime readers.

We’ve been critical of Howell in the past, when he teamed up with former commissioners Karl Peterjohn and Richard Ranzau in a very conservative majority that made some boneheaded, ideologically motivated moves, like rejecting health grants to address obesity and educate teens on sexually transmitted diseases.

And we’ll be critical of him again. We’re disappointed he was part of a sneaky decision by the County Commission not to send mail ballot applications to voters in advance of this election, which depresses turnout and causes longer lines to vote.

Also, mental health crisis services are a front-burner issue following the death of Cedric “C.J.” Lofton, a 17-year-old killed in county custody because rules were bent and he wound up in juvenile jail instead of the hospital.

Howell correctly diagnoses the problem: impatience that led to corners being cut.

But he’s against expansion of the ICT 1 program — a team made up of a police officer, paramedic and mental-health professional — that probably would have saved C.J.’s life had it been available at the time.

Howell balks at the $300,000-a-year cost of such teams, and favors contracting out for on-call mental health services instead. In some cases that would work, but it’s not the solution when a person in crisis needs to be strapped down, sedated and taken in for treatment for their own safety and the safety of others.

But Howell’s conservative frugality has it place — for example, in the years-long search for a permanent headquarters for county government.

Sedgwick County offices moved out of the county courthouse this year to make room for courts, and now operates out of leased space in the Ruffin Building downtown.

The clock is ticking. That lease runs for three years and commissioners will have to deal with this sooner rather than later.

Howell says the current estimate of $30-$50 million to build new headquarters downtown is too much. He’s right.

And he says the county offices don’t necessarily need to be in the downtown core. Right again.

Howell’s opponent in the race is former six-year Derby City Council member John McIntosh. He also served for six years on the board of the Sedgwick County Association of Cities, three as chairman.

McIntosh has a deep understanding of the needs of the one-fourth of Sedgwick County residents who aren’t Wichitans, and that would be a good perspective to have on the commission.

He has a strong career background in the building materials and construction industry. He favors building new for the county headquarters because often the cost of updating and renovating existing space makes it more trouble than it’s worth.

One answer that gave us pause in our endorsement interview was when we asked about the current discord on the commission, which has included complaints about Commissioner Lacey Cruse’s personal conduct and her counter-charge that some members took inappropriate flights and gifts from a developer.

McIntosh said those kinds of discussions shouldn’t play out publicly and that commissioners should settle them over lunch or behind closed doors.

We disagree.

Conflict is part of the process and the public needs to be able to see it play out. It can be messy and uncomfortable, but it’s often enlightening in explaining why certain things happen and other things don’t.

One thing about Howell: You may disagree with and criticize him, but you always know where he stands. If not, he’ll explain himself (sometimes in excruciating detail).

But that’s part of the process too.

Another way Howell has earned our respect is that he never dodges or refuses news interview requests.

Unlike some other Republican officeholders we could name — who only talk to “friendly” media — Howell’s never been afraid to step into a room where he knows hard questions are going to be asked.

Recent elections have moved the commission majority closer to the center, where it ought to be, with Howell as an outrigger on the right.

But his perspective is one that needs to be heard and considered in a county with a large conservative population.

And the Derby-based district he represents appears to align with his positions and priorities.

We’d give him another term.