QUINCY — Dave Dormier said he’s running for a new term on the Quincy City Council because he thinks Quincy has made progress, and he wants to continue that progress. He cited the case of family friends as an example.

“A young couple who graduated from Quincy High School. They didn’t go to college, but they were able to get good jobs in town, and after four years, they were able to buy a brand-new house,” Dormier said. “That’s our goal, to have our town be that way. I want to be able to continue to have good job opportunities for people who want to stay and build their lives here.”

Dormier is running for Council Position 5. He’s being challenged by Pete Shelton. Ricardo Ruesga Loera also filed for the seat, but told the Columbia Basin Herald that he’s not actively campaigning.

Like many cities in the Columbia Basin, Dormier said, Quincy is facing challenges with a sustainable water supply. In his opinion, that’s the biggest issue facing Quincy.

He’s part of a group of city and town officials from throughout Grant County that are working on a long-term plan to address water challenges, he said.

“We can’t just do it alone,” Dormier said. “We’re working on (a plan) that will definitely help Quincy but also help the whole Columbia Basin. We know that our aquifer under all of our cities is falling away, and we want to make sure that we have a supply.”

Quincy also is in need of upgrades to its sewer and industrial wastewater systems, he said, and he thinks his background as an engineer is an asset when dealing with infrastructure issues.

“I hope to be able to keep costs down, help make sure we’re going in the right direction, and be able to ask the right questions. To make sure that things are being done in the best possible way,” he said.

Dormier is the senior engineer at Erlandsen and Associates, East Wenatchee. He said he thinks that background is helpful in another of the challenges that he believes face Quincy; one of his areas of interest is improving city streets for pedestrians, especially around railroad crossings.

“I know that it’s important for some of our railroad crossings to be more pedestrian-friendly,” he said.

City officials are working with 13th District legislators, especially Rep. Alex Ybarra, R-Quincy, to obtain financing, he said. Those are expensive projects.

“We’re talking millions of dollars,” Dormier said.

Dormier said if he’s reelected, he wants to work on ensuring Quincy grows in an organized way. Planning for growth within the areas established in the urban growth area is important, he said, as well as planning to improve Quincy parks.

One of his goals, he said, is to make Quincy a town that attracts new businesses.

“We can bring in businesses and attract some retailers, a hotel, into the town, so we don’t have to go to other places,” he said.

Part of that is working on ways to make Quincy a place that attracts non-residents, he said, which will in turn help support local businesses.