Our current mayor, Anita “Sweetie” Marbury, deserves to serve another four-year term on Durango’s City Council. She has earned the opportunity to continue because of the accomplishments that have accrued during her service, the respect she has engendered in carrying out her fiduciary and governance duties and the positive attitude she brings to her work.

Sweetie has an enviable ability to see the silver lining in any situation. During her first term, the city very ably and seamlessly instituted single-stream recycling, and now eight of 10 residents participate in the program, which is a 280 percent increase compared with the previous sort-and-separate program. Even better, we’ve cut the amount of garbage dumped into the landfill by 6.5 million pounds – or 3,200 tons – saving $64,000 in landfill fees last year alone. That’s a measurable achievement, and Sweetie put her educator skills to good benefit in providing the public with the kind of information needed to adopt single-stream recycling and to make the transition successfully.

That’s but one example of many that demonstrates her past leadership and future potential. I have known Sweetie for a dozen years, though she has lived here more than four decades, was a teacher in area schools for 37 of those years and, over that span, has been involved in a number of civic boards and commissions. She cares about this community, its vibrant neighborhoods and the people who live in them. In my mind, there’s no contest in this municipal election: I’m voting for Sweetie.

Mike Matz

Durango