Republican Bob Herron is a businessman at heart. As owner of a Kalispell insurance company, Herron said he’s worked to grow not only his own business but to improve the business community in the valley as a whole.

If he’s elected Flathead County commissioner for District 3, Herron said he’ll put his business background to use improving the county’s economic state.

“A commissioner can be a salesperson for the county,” Herron said. “Obviously, the economy and jobs are very important to me.”

Herron says one of the best ways to improve the economy and create jobs would be to open up the Flathead National Forest for logging. This would not only make use of the resource, Herron said, but create local employment opportunities while avoiding any potential watershed issues.

“It’s not being managed,” Herron said. “We need the jobs. We need to cut timber.”

A coordination process between the county, state and federal entities would allow for better management of these forest lands, Herron said. He plans to “work with other counties and bring other parties to the table” to address the concerns of all those involved, including local environmental groups. If the forest is opened to logging activity, a portion of the revenue would go to Flathead County.

Herron’s interest in business growth first brought him into politics in the late 1990s when the Glacier Mall project was under review. Herron supported the project and ran for a seat on the Kalispell City Council to help make the proposed mall a reality.

“I believe in free enterprise and capitalism,” Herron said.

If built, the mall on U.S. 93 north of Kalispell would have created more than 1,000 retail and management jobs in the county, he said, and may have helped stave off the current local economic slump.

Herron also seeks to resolve the litigation surrounding the Whitefish planning “doughnut” in a way that favors the rights of the property owners involved. The best solution would involve a multi-agency, cooperative planning agreement in which the county commissioners would have the final say, similar to the planning structure of years past, he said.

“It was messy, but it seemed to work,” Herron said.

As it is now, Herron said, the “doughnut people” are not being represented.

Herron has lived in the Flathead Valley for 20 years, but he said he’s loved the area for much longer. A former Presbyterian minister, he spent summers in the Flathead since the early 1970s.

Herron is running against Republicans Terry Kramer, Gerald “Jay” Scott, Gary Krueger and Mike Schlegel. The winner of the June 5 primary will face Democrat Clara Mears-LaChappelle in general election on Nov. 7.