County Executive candidate Nancy Mistele has made criticism of the 911 Center a, well, centerpiece of her campaign. (Local blogger Emily Mills headlined a recent offering on Mistele, "A Noun, a Verb, and the 911 Center.")
Last week Mistele toured the facility. Explains campaign manager Jon Horne: "Once you're in there, you can tell how the background noise could contribute to a communicator missing some sounds on a call." It's not known why the dispatcher who fielded a call from murdered UW student Brittany Zimmermann did not hear her screams or sounds of a struggle.
But Mistele seems to be grasping that she needs to have other issues. Last Thursday, she issued a press release (PDF) proclaiming "Mistele Unveils Transportation Plan." It calls for repairing roads, improving highways and offering "bus service to communities that want it." Mistele criticizes a proposed commuter-rail line as "[County Executive] Kathleen Falk's amusement train ride," saying the numerous train crossings will "make our roads more dangerous."
Asked for a copy of Mistele's transportation plan, Horne referred to the 470-word press release and said, "That's everything that's documented."
