Thomas Shafer seeks to shake up Hayden City Council with candidacy for Seat #3

The news release, the match up, endorsements so far, and PACs

In a news release, Thomas Shafer announced his candidacy for Hayden City Council seat #3. Shafer is running against incumbent City Council Member Roger Saterfield. (See our coverage of Saterfiel and Matt Roetter’s candidacies.)

Shafer is a veteran of the United States Air Force holding the rank of Captain. In 2022, he became a trustee for the Kootenai-Shoshone Soil & Water Conservation District. Shafer has been a designer and systems engineer for 35 years. His experience in this business involves understanding complex technical products and bringing them to market.

Shafer says, “I can help redirect Hayden’s growth policies away from high-density housing, back to single-family homes and the bedroom community for which it is known. I want to be a voice for Hayden’s citizens, and bring back transparency and accountability to city government.”

“My platform is focused on three core issues: responsible growth, government transparency, and the unfair tax policies created by Hayden’s Urban Renewal Agency.”

He continued, “we can encourage private home ownership that strengthens Hayden’s small-town character.”

He emphasizes the need for transparency and wanting to ensure the City government and its staff listen to the Hayden citizens and take their input regarding the City’s policies and direction.

Hayden Urban Renewal Agency

In the news release, Shafer specifically called out concerns with the Hayden Urban Renewal Agency (HURA).

“According to the Kootenai County Treasurer’s office, businesses pay between 55-75% of their taxes to HURA and the remainder gets divided up to pay for city and county services. This shifts the burden to every taxpayer outside of HURA in the form of higher taxes.”

He emphasized the need to prioritize small businesses and local businesses as an important element of preserving Hayden’s small-town character.

The Match Up

Shafer vs. Saterfiel has the potential to change the direction of the Hayden City Council. Saterfiel has lived in Hayden for decades and been on the Council for 16 years. Saterfiel has been responsible for many decisions the Council has made over the years.

As an example, Saterfiel was a member of Council at the time when the Stone Creek North subdivision was approved. He was on Council during the period of time where, in the view of some concerned Hayden residents, Council did not address concerns related to wetlands in the area. (See coverage of the City’s special meeting to respond to Stone Creek North concerns.)

Saterfiel sits on Council during the Stone Creek North special meeting on Feb. 8, 2023 (Seat #3 is second from left). Thomas Shafer is in the audience.

Endorsements & Political Action Committees

Of the three races in Hayden, the Kootenai County GOP (Kootenai County Republican Central Committee) has made two endorsements. They endorse Thomas Shafer for City Council Seat #3 and Luke Sommer for Mayor. The KCRCC did not endorse Matt Roetter (who is running unopposed for City Council Seat #1).

The North Idaho Republicans PAC (affiliated with North Idaho Republicans) has not updated their website’s endorsements since the May 2023 election and does not currently list endorsements for the races in Hayden. (We will continue to look for updates, and you can email contact at haydencitizen dot com to let us know.)

A local PAC called “Preserve the City of Hayden” was heavily active in the 2021 City Council races where it came out in support of the winning candidates Ed DePriest and Sandra White who are both current members of City Council. The PAC’s Facebook page has not posted since February of 2022.

Matt Roetter was a leader of the Preserve the City of Hayden PAC. HURA board member Joy Richards supported this PAC and the candidates it backed. Richards was nominated to the HURA board by Mayor Scott Forssell in 2023 and approved by City Council.) She is a founding member of the previously mentioned North Idaho Republicans.

A 2021 campaign sign paid for by the Preserve the City of Hayden PAC

Wrap Up

We will continue to provide coverage of the candidates for Hayden City Council and Mayor of Hayden during the 2023 election.