Poling seeking 2nd term on council.

Byline: Edward Russo The Register-Guard

CORRECTION (ran 11/3/2005): City Councilor George Poling's daughter is from a current marriage. A story on Page D4 Wednesday had incorrect information.

Saying that four years is not enough, George Poling on Tuesday announced that he will seek a second term to the Eugene City Council.

"I've achieved some of my goals, but there is more work to be done," he said.

Poling is a retired Lane County sheriff's sergeant who has represented the city's northeast ward since 2003. He is a registered Democrat. Councilors are elected on a nonpartisan basis.

Poling's council seat is one of four up for grabs in the May 2006 election.

He is the first council incumbent to declare his candidacy for re-election. No challenger to him has stepped forward.

In his first term, Poling has dealt with a range of issues.

He supported the return of a fire engine to the Valley River fire station on Goodpasture Island Road, which will occur early next year. He said he also has supported increased police patrols and has responded to residents' traffic concerns, including getting the city to install a turn lane on Calvin Street, next to Bertha Holt Elementary School.

As a member of an advisory group to the Lane Transit District, Poling said he and others concluded that the proposal to put a frequent service bus rapid transit line on Coburg Road needs more study.

"We were able to take a step back and say, let's put it on the back burner until the first segments of the bus rapid transit system elsewhere in Eugene and Springfield are completed," he said.

Poling, who is serving as council president this year, said he has worked on job growth measures, including pushing for a commercial and industrial lands study. The study, partly funded by the city, will evaluate whether the metro area has enough land to accommodate businesses.

Poling backed the west Eugene enterprise zone, an area where businesses that expand or build and add employees can get property tax breaks. Last summer, after controversy over potential tax breaks, the council approved rules for the zone.

If re-elected, Poling said he would work on the same priorities: public safety, transportation and job growth.

When he first joined the council, Poling often was in the council majority. Since the election of Mayor Kitty Piercy and Councilor Andrea Ortiz, however, Poling has sometimes found himself on the losing end.

Last week, for example, Poling voted with councilors Jennifer Solomon, Gary Pape and Chris Pryor to continue support for the West Eugene Parkway. Councilors Betty Taylor, David Kelly, Bonny Bettman and Ortiz voted against the proposal. Piercy broke the tie, voting against including the parkway on a priority funding list.

But Poling said he is not frustrated by the new council makeup. "We need to continue to work together to get things accomplished, and that is something that I am working toward," he said.

GEORGE POLING

Born: Jan. 15, 1950, Midwest City, Okla.

Education: Bachelor's degree in criminology, California State University-Long Beach; 3,000 hours of law enforcement training

Political career: Eugene city councilor, Ward 4

Work Experience: Lane County Sheriff's Office, sergeant, deputy sheriff, deputy sheriff specialist; patrol officer, Costa Mesa, Calif., police department; United States Marine Corps Reserve, military police and engineer battalion support

Personal: Married to Glenda Poling, with grown daughter from previous marriage