At its Tuesday, January 9th meeting, the Coconino County Board of Supervisors appointed Adam Hess, a U.S. Army veteran, registered Democrat and Belmont resident, to represent Coconino County's 3rd District, which includes Oak Creek Canyon, Uptown and East. took an oath to elect. half of Sedona's chapel area for the remainder of the year. Mr. Hess has announced that he will seek a full four-year term in this year's election.
“I want to do what's right for everyone,” Hess said. “I don't lean left or right, I'm here to help everyone. That's important to me coming from a military background. I always had to do the right thing. …So I want everyone to know that I'm here to support everyone. I'm not here to impose my own agenda. I'm here to impose my own rhetoric. Not that there is…my goals, esp. [for] Sedona plans to consult with the county and surrounding communities to ensure the creek is used safely. “So why would I vote for Adam Hess?” Because I think I'm the guy who can bring everyone together and have a candid conversation. ”
At the heart of Hess' platform is building a “great network for veterans,” which stems from his own recent 27-year retirement from the military.
“Once you go through that process, it's very confusing and difficult,” Hess said. “Here in northern Arizona, we're kind of isolated. We want to reach out. [reservations] To all those who served best there, I want to reach out to all the other veterans in my area and let them know how they can connect with Veterans of Foreign Wars…because , because there are many things we don't know if we can use them or not. I want to learn about it and spread that information to help everyone. ”
Hess also said mitigating the high risk of wildfires and other environmental issues will be one of District 3's priorities.
“The biggest and scariest thing for the Sedona and Flagstaff area is wildfires,” Hess said. “We know how destructive wildfires are. Yesterday we had a long meeting about them. We'll have another call after this to talk about wildfires and ways to reduce damage. …because wildfires cause flooding, which causes debris flows, which damage homes in Oak Creek Canyon and up there and up Bill Williams Mountain. Caring for one of the largest ponderosa forests in the country isn't cheap, and funding is not cheap. That’s probably the biggest challenge we have to figure out how to source it.”
Hess said he has met twice with the U.S. Forest Service to understand the potential impacts of a cement additive pozzolan mine planned at the base of Bill Williams Mountain near Williams.
“[My platform is] It’s primarily about forest conservation and making sure people are safe and able to use Flagstaff and the surrounding area,” Hess said. “And that's my main platform to make sure everyone has a voice. This year I have to remember the job and the campaign. So my goal this year is to really learn the job and transfer that knowledge. It's about understanding and spreading the word and getting elected so we can make a difference in the future. We're just trying to get everything lined up and organized.”
This was Hess's first foray into politics. He was selected from a pool of five candidates at the board's regular meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 5, to replace former Superintendent Matt Ryan, a fellow Democrat who represented the district for 27 years and served as board chairman seven times. Mr. Ryan will retire effective December 31st, and the Board of Directors began discussing his replacement at a meeting on Tuesday, October 24th.
“It has been my great pleasure to spend the past 27 years working with so many people, working on both nature and culture, managing our beautiful county in so many different ways,” Ryan said in his resignation letter. . “It's been a life journey from the beginning.”
Mr. Hess recently completed a three-month internship at Mr. Ryan's office, which helps military members transition into civilian roles and gain work experience, and has been considering a government role for the past two years. said.
“I had no idea what was going to happen or how it was going to go,” Hess said. “I learned so much and was able to work with public works, community development, parks and rec, and learned a lot about how it works at the operator level. It helped me understand how solid Coconino County is and how solid we really are. ”
Hess is the only child of Jim and Ann Hess, a coach and teacher, respectively, who both work in the Flagstaff Unified School District and still live in the area. He grew up in Flagstaff and spent his sixth through eighth grades at Camp Verde.
“[I] I graduated from Sinagua High School and I was a football player and a wrestler, but primarily a wrestler and a football player, in that order,” Hess said. “I tried wrestling at a few different schools, but eventually fell in love with Army ROTC. I did it. [Northern Arizona University]. I went in there and joined the National Guard to help out with college…I went through basic training in 1997, then completed ROTC and graduated from NAU in December 2000. ”
Hess later earned a master's degree in geological engineering from Missouri Tech University and retired with the rank of major. He has a 14 year old daughter and a 12 year old son.
“It's in the hands of the people of Coconino County District 3,” Hess said. “What excites me is going out and campaigning…I love talking to people and I want to help my community. I've done everything for them, and now I'm able to do it back home, in my home county, and actually talk to people and get them what they need and be able to apply things. I'm going into this campaign hoping to win, and how I can help the people of District 3 and the county as a whole… It's scary. I'm putting my heart and soul into this. And I think we'll do a great job. But it's up to the people to vote.”
