Casey-Kaiser seeks East Side Highway District seat

Lorna Casey-Kaiser is seeking election for commissioner of Sub-District 1 for the East Side Highway District in Tuesday's election.

The district serves southeast Kootenai County from Coeur d'Alene to Cataldo to the east and Harrison and St. Maries to the south. It includes Medimont.

Previously, Casey-Kaiser said she led the fight and helped to mobilize residents in Harrison and Coeur d'Alene to stop three local improvement districts taxation from East Side Highway District.

She believes the LIDs would have put an extreme and unfair additional tax burden on residents.

Since then, Casey-Kaiser said she has followed district happenings. The current East Side Highway District Master Plan based the five-year capital improvement plan which prioritized improvements include better access for recreational users and road improvements based on bicyclist use and the mention of possible future Local Improvement Districts for additional funding.

Casey-Kaiser said she would never vote for a forced LID and would budget and plan according to residents’ safety and needs.

She believes that local residents' needs should be the determining factor for local roads and not the Bureau of Land Management and recreation and cycling groups.

If elected, Casey-Kaiser said she would work to implement cost-effective maintenance programs and prioritize road repairs according to use and needs of residents. While the roads are shared with other users, she said she would base decisions off of the residence needs first.

Casey-Kaiser works at a Fortune 500 Company in the financial sector dealing with fraud.

Previously, she performed paralegal work and was a business owner. She said she understands finances and roads and will work to make the district better and safer.

She has been married 27 years and has three grown children.