To the editor:

As a former Bainbridge Island Fire Department commissioner and island taxpayer, I believe one of the most important community considerations for voters is board makeup. Ideally the commission would be made up of individuals with a wide range of talents and experiences – not just fire experience.

In my view, if a candidate states they have experience with firefighting or medical response (eg. works within any fire department ) then the voter should ask do they have an internal fire department bias?

At the end of my term one of my fellow commissioners had a legal conflict of interest, and equally important, the other commissioner had this bias. The value of having a board with a broad background looking equally at the interests of the citizen’s welfare, taxpayers and the department itself was lost.

Members of the fire department are always convinced their requests are best for the department but they can lose sight of what is important to the island as a whole.

The candidates who would not have this built in bias from their work history are Teri Dettmer, David Lynch and Eileen McSherry.

Without a diverse board the fire commission, instead of being a governing body, becomes nothing more than a chorus singing whatever song the department is directing.

DOUG JOHNSON

Bainbridge Island