Two candidates get our nod in the 5th District council primary | Opinion

Whoever is elected to the 5th District seat of the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council will have big shoes to fill. The departing Liz Sheehan was one of the most hard-working, smart and effective council members we have seen, someone who combined passion and policy in equal measure.

That’s why it’s a relief to endorse two newcomers in our May primary: Stephenie Steitzer Hoelscher and Nicholas Wolter. Under Lexington’s system, the top two voter getters in council races will emerge before the November election decides on one of them.

They have different backgrounds and perspectives, but either one would make a good addition to council. Hoelscher is a former journalist, who then moved to the state Auditor’s office before returning to school for a masters in public policy. She has a long track record of speaking truth to power and understands complex problems from state and local angles.

Wolter is a builder who started out in interior renovations but has moved on to house construction. Through that process, he has seen first-hand the many issues that affect Lexington’s affordable housing problems, and comes at it with some unique perspectives and a desire to solve the problems.

Although a home builder, Wolter says he is not backed by developer groups. In fact, both Hoelscher and Wolter understand the exceedingly complicated background to Lexington’s development woes, including the botched process of the most recent opening of the Urban Service Boundary and how the council can do better moving forward. They deeply understand the role that Lexington’s agriculture sector plays in both identity and economics.

The 5th District covers much of Lexington’s core; it sees the best the city has to offer and experiences many of its problems. Both candidates would like to see better city efforts at infill and redevelopment, particularly recreating the missing “middle housing” the multi-family housing units that work so well in places like Ashland Park.

Expensive housing has contributed to Lexington’s homelessness problems. Despite much work by city officials, both candidates pledge to find new answers. Wolter, in particular, had the intriguing idea of using part of the city’s hotel tax to help the homeless, since the problem directly affects our growing tourism industry.

They have both shown the necessary need to listen as Chevy Chase residents have erupted over a proposed mental health facility on Duke Road.

Our merged government is an intensely complicated entity, and council members have to understand the issues that face not just their districts but the entire city/county. As newcomers, both Hoelscher and Wolter would have a lot to learn, but we believe they are well up to the challenge, and show both the temperament and intelligence to do an excellent job.

The Herald-Leader believes the tradition of candidate endorsements enhances interest and participation in the civic process, whether readers agree with the newspaper’s recommendations or not. The paper has unusual access to candidates and their backgrounds, and considers part of its responsibility to help citizens sort through campaign issues and rhetoric.

An endorsement represents the consensus of the editorial board. The decisions have no connection to the news coverage of political races and are wholly separate from journalists who cover those races.

Unendorsed candidates can respond with 250-word letters that will be published as soon as possible.