In Kalispell’s only contested City Council race, there’s one name in the race that voters may not have heard before.

That name is Chris Cunningham, 26, who is running for Rod Kuntz’s Ward 3 seat, making his debut in local politics. He faces Kuntz and Karlene Osorio-Khor in the Nov. 3 election.

Cunningham has a degree in political science from the American Military University, an online institution, and an Associate of Arts degree from Flathead Valley Community College. He currently works at the ImagineIF Library in Kalispell as a materials handler, replacing returned books and rerouting them to other cities.

Cunningham has been diagnosed Asperger’s Syndrome, a form of autism that is considered to be on the high-functioning end of the spectrum. He said his diagnosis is something voters deserve to know and that it could influence his ability to communicate or organize his thoughts in stressful situations. But the more obvious symptoms have toned down as he’s grown older, he said, and he believes it has given him a unique observation of society.

“It was one of the things I was reluctant about to get into government in the first place. It’s a very social kind of position and that’s the opposite of where I’m coming from,” Cunningham said. “In ways, I do think it will exhaust me completely, but its something I’m willing to do if people want me to carry out the job.”

He said he’s mostly running to give the residents of Kalispell another choice; it’s something he sees as a civic duty.

“I never expected to win, even from the beginning,” he said. “It’s been great to have the opportunity to serve folks, but it’s another way to give back to people, in one way or another,” he said.

PARKING DISTRICT

Previously, Cunningham worked with fellow Ward 3 candidate Karlene Osorio-Khor to find a solution to the westside parking issue surrounding Flathead High School. But after clashing over philosophical and fundamental differences, Cunningham said they parted ways to work on the issue.

“My alternative is focus more on trying to spread the parking out over a broad area. There would still be student parking in some areas but the idea would be to reduce the quantity of it on any given roadway,” Cunningham said.

Until the city is able to make a major investment, like moving the high school to the edge of town, Cunningham said, he believes the solution to the parking issue should be multifaceted. He suggested communicating with the high school about reorganizing school bus routes to pick up more students in town and encouraging more students to walk or ride bikes to school.

In early September, a group of residents sued the city, arguing that the current solution, $25 parking passes for students and faculty to park in the residential district, does not alleviate congestion.

Cunningham said he would have preferred a different solution than the parking passes. As the current council has tabled the issue to survey the affects of the parking pass solution over the next year, Cunningham said his position could change if results prove him wrong after a year.

CITY DEVELOPMENT

Cunningham believes the city has made a lot of positive efforts to revitalize the city. Recent changes may seem incremental, he said, but he applauds the emphasis on long-term planning.

He sees the Core Area Development Plan as the best potential for Kalispell’s future development.

“If we don’t revitalize the core area, all the growth will continue in the northern end of town and little bit toward the south end of town. We’ll have a rotten core eventually,” Cunningham said. “We’ve got to use the resources we’ve got and be innovative about it.”

Cunningham said he supports the expansion of the Kalispell City Airport. He doesn’t believe the upgrade would produce a significant increase in traffic, and that the airport would still be several phases away from attracting jumbo-jet businesses.

CITY REVENUES

Cunningham said he would support a property tax increase to provide a more robust set of services to provide the public.

He suspects the city budget passed in August has already been trimmed to the furthest extent, and that he might not find much leeway in cutting current projects.

“I want to sit down with the councilors and see what’s going on with the budget,” Cunningham said. “The main thing I got from (the recently passed budget) is that the funding for them is rather tight and there’s things they could do if they had more revenue.”

SHORT TERM

If elected, Cunningham said he wants to immediately trim the city code, striking redundant and outdated codes from what he calls a bloated set of city ordinances.

“For instance, there’s a code about kids not hanging off of or throwing rocks at [train] passenger cars, but we haven’t had an Amtrak here in I don’t know how long,” Cunningham said.

Cunningham would also support a solidarity fund for the city; instead of imposing tax increases for development funds, residents could choose if they want to participate in a tax revenue option individually.

He also support limiting annexation by the city.

Another issue Cunningham wants to bring to the city’s attention is the poverty rate.

“We have the second-largest largest poverty rate in the state, which is phenomenal for a town the size of Kalispell,” Cunningham said. “The area where I live on the west side, there are buildings looking like they’re ready to fall apart.”

Cunningham hopes he’ll be able to connect with more Kalispell voters on what they believe are the biggest issues in city government.

“I never expected to win, even from the beginning. It’s great to have the opportunity to serve folks, but it’s another way to give back to people, in one way or another,” he said.

Voters can visit Cunningham’s campaign website for more information at www.redalgo.weebly.com.

Reporter Seaborn Larson may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at slarson@dailyinterlake.com.