Three Wichita City Council seats are up for election this year. But only District 4, which covers southwest Wichita, will have a primary.
The current council member for District 4, Jeff Blubaugh, is termed out and cannot seek re-election, meaning the district will elect a new person to the council this year.
City elections are nonpartisan, so party labels will not be shown next to candidate names on the ballot.
The primary election is Aug. 1, but early voting begins July 17. The top two candidates will advance to the general election Nov. 7.
Here’s where the candidates stand on the key issues they’ll face if elected to represent the district:
Name: Bentley T. Blubaugh
Occupation: Operator of Mr Bs Daylight Donuts
Website: BlubaughforWichita.com
If elected, what is your number one priority for District 4?
To make District 4 a safe, affordable, and enjoyable district for workers, families, and community members.
In 2025, the city is expecting a budget deficit. If reducing city services were necessary to address the deficit, what services would you deem untouchable and which would you cut?
I believe the police should be fully funded as necessary. The safety of our citizens isn't something to compromise with. With that in mind, services like Parks and Rec could take a short sacrifice for the betterment of the city. There is money within Wichita being misappropriated. Unfortunately it seems we are out of time to properly face the deficit.
A large portion of the city’s unpaved roads are located in District 4, which can cause health and safety issues for residents. What is your plan to continue to fund the paving of roads in the district?
The higher traffic areas of unpaved roads should be considered for pavement, but I also believe it is just as important to maintain what paved roads we already have to begin with, as issues with those can also affect safety for residents.
Southwest Wichita has seen some large developments and investments in the area recently. How do you balance the needs of residents and those of developers?
I believe that developers provide an asset to Wichita such as housing. The priority should always be the citizens of District 4. We should not favor developers just because of our connection with them, we should always bid projects such as developments and construction properly, as well as ensure the developers have the intention to impact the community in a positive way and not for their own interest.
Name: Dalton Glasscock
Occupation: Small business owner and CEO, university lecturer
Website:www.daltonglasscock.com
If elected, what is your number one priority for District 4?
The primary function of local government is public safety. I commit to working with [the Wichita Police Department] and [the Wichita Fire Department] to find innovative solutions to pay and personnel challenges; retention bonuses, college reimbursement options, longevity bonuses, and healthcare retention incentives. Both face staffing and resource challenges while we see increased crime and response time.
My priority is building a new fire station in District 4. There is no station west of the airport and south of Kellogg, one of Wichita’s fastest-growth areas and D4’s most densely populated. I’ve ridden with Wichita Fire, spoken with the fire union, and seen their challenges. I support adding and prioritizing this in the Capital Improvement Plan and championing this with my six other colleagues. We must give WFD the tools to be successful. If we don’t do public safety well, we fail as a city.
In 2025, the city is expecting a budget deficit. If reducing city services were necessary to address the deficit, what services would you deem untouchable and which would you cut?
City Hall must focus on the basics. Public safety, roads, and water are non-negotiables. First, the city must look at future Capital Improvement Projects that must be delayed or canceled. Like families in District 4, the council must make tough decisions.
I will choose a new fire station, improved roads, and a stronger police force over creating new amenities like a pickleball complex or additional recreation centers. Instead, I’d maintain our current South Wichita city-run facilities and amenities first: Aley Park, Pawnee Prairie Park, and Osage Recreation Center, to name a few. I’m hopeful that by thinking strategically, the city can mitigate the potential challenges facing the city in 2025 and work to offset the brunt of a deficit.
Many of the city’s unpaved roads are located in District 4, which can cause health and safety issues for residents. What is your plan to continue to fund the paving of roads in the district?
Second to concerns for public safety, road investment is the biggest concern I’ve heard when talking to residents of District 4. Of the 84 unpaved miles in Wichita, nearly a third of it lies in southwest Wichita. Almost all of these unpaved roads lie in lower-income neighborhoods.
I’ve talked with those living on minimum wage jobs and young kids in the house or elderly on fixed incomes – they don’t desire, and in many cases, can’t go outside at certain times of the day because of health and safety concerns. My grandmother was one of those individuals living just near 43rd and Osage.
As Councilman, I’d continue prioritizing the paving of dirt roads near schools and, upon completion, move funding to high-traffic residential communities in lower-income parts of town, most of which are in District 4. We can’t just invest in dirt roads but also repair crumbling roads like Maple.
Southwest Wichita has seen some large developments and investments in the area recently. How do you balance the needs of residents and those of developers?
As Chairman of the District 4 Advisory Board, many zoning and development cases come before us before moving to the Metropolitan Area Planning Commission or Council. When they do, my first question to nearly every applicant is, “Have you reached out to the neighbors?” and my first question to city staff is, “Have we received any community feedback on this application?” If the applicant has not reached out to neighbors, nearly always, the city staff receives community protests. Those seeking to develop must invest themselves in the community and the neighborhoods they are looking at developing. Southwest Wichita leads the city as the manufacturing core of our region and is projected to be one of the fastest-growing residential areas. Developers must be held accountable for what they promise when offered incentives and expected to get to know the neighborhoods they seek to be part of.
Name: Alan Oliver
Occupation: Retired
Website: alanoliverwichitacitycouncil.com
If elected, what is your number one priority for District 4?
Our city streets, especially Maple Street.
In 2025, the city is expecting a budget deficit. If reducing city services were necessary to address the deficit, what services would you deem untouchable and which would you cut?
Streets are my biggest concern and untouchable, but I would want to look at the budget line by line.
A large portion of the city’s unpaved roads are located in District 4, which can cause health and safety issues for residents. What is your plan to continue to fund the paving of roads in the district?
I would look at all of them and prioritize and do one after the other.
Southwest Wichita has seen some large developments and investments in the area recently. How do you balance the needs of residents and those of developers?
Look, we're all in this together. Let's work with the residents to see what they want.
Name: Judy Pierce
Occupation: Retired. President of the Wichita Hutchinson Labor Federation
Website: none given
If elected, what is your number one priority for District 4?
My favorite four letter word, “Jobs.” People in South Wichita are hard workers, and they deserve steady full-time employment, where they not only make a living wage, but have an opportunity to save money and provide for their families, future education and travel and the ability to afford the qualities of life that all working people deserve.
In 2025, the city is expecting a budget deficit. If reducing city services were necessary to address the deficit, what services would you deem untouchable and which would you cut?
I can tell you without question the workers are the necessary services I would deem untouchable. We cannot function as a city without functional roads, clean drinking water and sewers that run properly through well kept infrastructure. We need Police and Fire and EMS for emergencies. I would cut the unnecessary giveaways to developers and leave things like pickleball courts and money losing baseball stadiums to the private industry where they belong. If they are popular they will sustain themselves in the private industry, not on the backs of tax payers.
A large portion of the city’s unpaved roads are located in District 4, which can cause health and safety issues for residents. What is your plan to continue to fund the paving of roads in the district?
Quality infrastructure is one of the pillars of a well run city. However, as I understand the issue, the poverty level in many of these neighborhoods are one of the roadblocks to getting these streets paved. While it is charitable to make improvements for those living under the poverty level, it's not fair to rob Peter to pay Paul and what we really need is to get these families above the poverty level and improve their quality of life with good paying steady jobs. People in poverty want to feel empowered to pay their own way; they just need real opportunities to do so.
Southwest Wichita has seen some large developments and investments in the area recently. How do you balance the needs of residents and those of developers?
I hate to sound like a broken record but it’s all about jobs and opportunity. I've watched plenty of developers get sweetheart deals from the city over the years. Some people feel that these tax abatements and giveaways help bring things to the community we wouldn't otherwise have. Unfortunately, that debate is as old as the chicken or the egg. I think we need to do two things. First, make sure the developers are following their agreements with the city, and secondly I hope to encourage more affordable housing in those areas. If you're going to build $325,000 houses there need to be jobs within the area that can support the upper middle class wages but it takes to support such a community. But if most of your residents are only making between $40,000 and $130,000 a year, the city needs to plan accordingly and make sure that there are quality homes for those people who work just as hard in professions that don't pay such lucrative wages.
