C.R. council at large: Swore, Duffy

The two at-large seats on the Cedar Rapids City Council won't include any incumbents come January. Brian Fagan is running for mayor while Pat Shey wants the District 3 seat.

That doesn't mean all the at-large faces necessarily will be new after the Nov. 3 city election results are tallied. Indeed, among the five candidates competing, a former office holder gets our endorsement for one of the positions. Chuck Swore served District 4 in the new council-manager government before losing his re-election bid to Chuck Wieneke in 2007.

Swore gets our support largely because we believe he will bring an experienced voice willing to challenge the status quo if a process or policy doesn't appear to be working for the good of residents or businesses.

We expect Swore, if elected, will take a more seasoned, tempered approach to serving. During his first term, we admired his willingness to pitch new proposals - even the controversial, ill-fated idea to sell a portion of Twin Pines Golf Course for development - but sometimes did not appreciate the way he handled feedback. When we endorsed his re-election bid in 2007, we wrote that “At times, his ideas and candidness have invoked public wrath” and that he “should polish his public decorum a bit.”

We believe Swore has learned from that experience without losing his ever-present candor and passion to solve problems and serve his community.

His background in managing a small business and other previous civic involvement as Five Seasons Facilities chair and the city Planning Commission also gives him deeper understanding of the city's workings.

Our choice for the other at-large seat is Nick Duffy. Despite his lack of previous public office experience, this 23-year-old teacher impressed us with his maturity and understanding of city government and the issues facing the council. As a Cedar Rapids native who has seen relatives and friends shaken by the 2008 flood, Duffy's priorities include making sure that disaster victims are getting the answers they need from City Hall and that economic development initiatives focus on incorporating local expertise and labor whenever possible.

Duffy's learning curve will be steep, but we think he's up to the task and will ably represent young adults' interests.

We also appreciate that Don Karr, who helped found the small business flood-recovery group, young Realtor Aaron Saylor and small-business owner Robert Bates are making this a highly contested race with many choices for voters to consider.