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Moe seeks mayor’s seat

Former county commission candidate vying for city office

Brian Smith
Craig resident Frank Moe, 59, sits in the lobby of the Best Western Plus Deer Park Inn & Suites, which he co-owns, Monday. Moe announced his interest in running for Craig mayor in the city’s municipal election. He is a former Moffat County Commission candidate, but lost the bid to current commissioner Tom Mathers.
Brian Smith

Pull quote:

“I just came to the conclusion that whether it is for mayor or city council, all good people need to step up and help serve. I have the ability and the time to serve the people.”

— Craig resident Frank Moe, on the reasons he wanted to run for Craig mayor in the city’s April election





Craig resident Frank Moe, 59, sits in the lobby of the Best Western Plus Deer Park Inn & Suites, which he co-owns, Monday. Moe announced his interest in running for Craig mayor in the city’s municipal election. He is a former Moffat County Commission candidate, but lost the bid to current commissioner Tom Mathers.
Brian Smith

Pull quote:

“I just came to the conclusion that whether it is for mayor or city council, all good people need to step up and help serve. I have the ability and the time to serve the people.”

— Craig resident Frank Moe, on the reasons he wanted to run for Craig mayor in the city’s April election

Last summer, Craig resident Frank Moe went for a walk.



He tallied 55 miles during his trip knocking on doors and meeting one-on-one with residents for several months.

The walk was part of a larger goal — winning a seat on the Moffat County Commission.



Despite losing that bid to current commissioner Tom Mathers in the August 2010 primary election, Moe said he learned a lot from the campaign about Craig residents’ concerns for their city.

Those messages of what residents wanted their city “to do and become” stuck with Moe and were the main reason he decided to pick up a nomination petition packet Monday to run for Craig mayor, he said.

“When I walked the 55 miles, I was scared when I saw just how many houses had been foreclosed on, how many houses are for sale, what our unemployment rate was and that our economy is energy-based, and we need to diversify and it can’t happen overnight,” the 59-year-old Moe said. “It is not saying that leaders now, or in the past, haven’t done it, but we have got new challenges with all of this.

“But, I was scared for all of my neighbors and passionate that we have to become proactive in developing our economy and developing a community that will be more attractive to businesses.”

Moe will be running for mayor against Craig City Council member Terry Carwile, who announced his intent to run for the position in January.

Current mayor Don Jones is term limited.

Moe said he first considered running for mayor about two months ago.

“I just came to the conclusion that whether it is for mayor or city council, all good people need to step up and help serve,” he said. “I have the ability and the time to serve the people.”

Moe also said the foundation for his candidacy stemmed from a desire to give back to the community. It is not necessarily a passion for politics, he noted, but a passion for helping his neighbors.

“Really, we have lived here for so many years in this area — Moffat County and the city of Craig — and it has been very generous in our family relationships, in our business, and really it’s time to give back,” he said.

There are a number of issues on Moe’s mind, he said, from Colorado House Bill 10-1365, Northwest Colorado’s relationship with the governor and other Denver lawmakers, to ongoing negotiations between the city and the Moffat County Commission about the Moffat County Public Safety Center, and the future of tourism in the county.

But, he thinks he can help get more people involved and “if we use more of our energies, we are going to get more done.”

“The reason I am running is that I have a passion for our area,” he said. “I have a passion and a knowledge knowing it’s not one person, or one group’s ideas that are good. We have to live with each other.

“It is more what can we agree on to make stuff better.”

Moe noted he was excited about the proactive steps taken by the community to start on a positive note with new Gov. John Hickenlooper, and said he wanted to continue such a relationship.

“We don’t have to agree on everything, but we do have to have lines of communication,” he said. “We are headed in the right direction.”

Moreover, Moe said he was pleased with the current infrastructure of the city and its various supporting staff.

“I think the bases that are there are excellent,” he said.

Moe said he would like to be a mayor that takes on larger issues such as economic development, tourism and addressing the future of the city.

“The world is very precarious and we need to take care of ourselves,” he said.

Brian Smith can be reached at 875-1794 or briansmith@craigdailypress.com.

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