Dave Harvey is seeking a seat on Dayton City Council

DAYTON-Local winemaker Dave Harvey is running for Dayton City Council, Position 1, against the incumbent Laura Aukerman, who has served on the council since 2022.

When asked to talk about the most pressing issues facing the city, Harvey responded, saying the city is facing "skyrocketing" costs for services provided by the county for law enforcement, municipal court, and emergency dispatch. The city's share is around $700,000 this year. The contract between the city and the county for those services will expire at the end of the year and will need to be renegotiated.

"There are many questions the city needs to ask the Sheriff's and Prosecutor's Offices to clarify exactly what services are included regarding "extra" charges being paid by city residents.

"With all the facts in order, I'm confident that the city can negotiate a more affordable Interlocal Agreement," he said.

The wastewater treatment plant project has faced several design challenges since a 2008 mandate from the Washington State Department of Ecology required the city to keep wastewater effluent out of the Touchet River for six months out of the year.

Harvey said he was told by City of Dayton Mayor Roger Trump that the city has received one of the three one-million-dollar grants, and the land for the treatment plant has been purchased. The other two grants should soon follow, and the design phase can begin.

"It will be a long row to hoe, but if we work together, I'm certain the community can see the project through."

Harvey thinks the city should work with Columbia County, the Port of Columbia, and the Dayton Chamber of Commerce, along with existing businesses, to develop a more robust commercial sector. He said commercial growth is the key to the City's financial stability, and even its survival.

In 2017, the City of Dayton closed the public swimming pool due to significant infrastructure issues. Harvey said there is a role for the city to assist the newly formed Parks and Recreation District in its effort to construct and maintain a new swimming pool.

He explained, "One of the specific items that I would support would be to transfer the existing property and bath house to the Parks District, if they can use it when constructing a new facility."

Harvey thinks the Planning Department is doing a good job with limited resources, but he believes more should be done to enforce municipal nuisance codes, which will make Dayton safer and more attractive.

Harvey grew up in eastern Washington, graduating from Washington State University in 1988. He spent the next thirty years working in the Washington wine industry before opening Red Band Cellars in Dayton in 2018.

He and his wife, Jackie, and their daughter, Maya, moved to Dayton in 2020. For recreation, he enjoys fishing and "fisher people".

Laura Aukerman did not respond to "The Times" request for an interview.