The majority of the Montgomery County Commission is on the ballot this November and the balance of power could change, if two Republican challengers or an independent candidate win favor with voters over incumbent Democrats.

Commissioner Deborah Lieberman is running for re-election against Kettering Councilman Ashley Webb. Fellow Commissioner Judy Dodge, has two challengers: former County Sheriff Dave Vore, a Republican, and William Pace, an Independent businessman. Pace declined to answer Dayton Daily News questions for this profile.s

Republicans controlled the commission from 1992 until Democrats took the majority in 2006. In November, voters decide if the Democratic trio, which includes Commissioner Dan Foley who was re-elected in 2010, continues or if other leadership is added to the mix.

None could deny that the county has struggled, even before the recession. Census data shows the county lost 4.3 percent of its population between 2000-2010. The number of people with jobs fell by more than 50,000 between 2002 and 2011. Property owners, in the wake of the nationwide housing market crash, were powerless to stop the decline of their home values. The county’s total property value tumbled 7 percent in 2010, with three out of four of the nearly 212,000 residential properties losing value.

The are signs of economic recovery.

Sales tax revenue for 2012 is expected to surpass 2008 figures by more than $2.5 million. Real estate-based fees are poised to climb $0.6 million, a sign of positive movement in the housing market. The number of people with jobs rose slightly in 2011 compared to 2010 and businesses such as GE Aviation, Caterpillar, and White Castle are investing here.

Damar Mayberry, 18, of Huber Heights votes for the first time this fall. The Miami Valley Career Technology Center’s Youth Connections student, said the election has been a frequent topic at school. He’s undecided in the commission race, but said he knows what he is looking for in a candidate.

“Montgomery County needs more jobs,” he said. “I going to vote for the candidate that has the best ideas to create jobs.”

Voters’ choices for commission will shape policy, approve funding and lobby for programs that influence whether the economy continues growing or backslides. Four of the candidates, Pace declined to be interviewed, say jobs are a priority. The Dayton Daily News examined their plans to get more citizens working and how they would fund those initiatives.

Lieberman’s job and workforce development plan

The current commission has focused economic growth efforts in four areas: aerospace technology, logistics and distribution, a vibrant urban core and the Interstate 75 corridor. Lieberman calls it a balanced approach.

Lieberman proposes merging the county’s economic development efforts and building permit services with the city of Dayton’s and any other jurisdiction that wants to streamline and be part of a unified approach.

“Five years ago, there was a study that recommended consolidating economic development efforts, then the recession hit,” Lieberman said. “I’m going to push for that now.”

The county must get ahead of the curve ensuring people are trained for jobs available now and in the future, she said.

Chair of the county’s Workforce Development Team, Lieberman said she worked to convene discussions with business leaders from all sectors. From those conversations, she found there are thousands of unfilled jobs here, including many in manufacturing.

“We have to connect people to the jobs that are available. We have to connect people who need jobs with training,” she said. “We can assist them by working with our partners, Sinclair Community College, the Miami Valley Career Technology Center and other training providers.”

A program called Match Maker is being developed by the county’s economic development, which will result in a database of all local suppliers and their products.

“People have told us they want to buy local. This program will make it easier to do that,” Lieberman said.

Lieberman also said she would champion Learn to Earn programs that ensure children are ready to learn as they enter kindergarten, able to read in third grade and are prepared for college or work after high school graduation.

Job creation doesn’t always mean awarding county funds, Lieberman said. Having connections around the state and a willingness to lobby for state and federal dollars can make or break a deal, she said.

Collective Brands/Payless Shoe Source now operates a $35 million distribution site in Brookville that has about 300 workers who ship up to 300,000 pairs of shoes daily to 2,200 Payless stores east of the Mississippi River. That business was nearly lost to Indiana.

“All three of the commissioners got on the telephone to the governor to lobby for it,” Lieberman said. “Then, we connected Payless to the Montgomery County Job Center, which served as their employment agency.”

Use of the county’s economic development funding must be strategic, such as a $2 million bank-backed loan from the Montgomery County Community Investment Corporation for expansion of Dayton-Based Techmetals, Inc. The company also is in line for a $200,000 ED/GE grant, Lieberman said.

“We were being wooed by our customers to move outside the county,” said Phillip Brockman, president of Techmetals, Inc., a metal coating company. “We were looking at moving, if we couldn’t get the funding.”

Lieberman’s jobs plan also encompasses programs for high school dropouts and ex-offenders.

Sinclair established the Fast Forward Center in 2001 to develop and maintain a network of alternative schools and programs to serve out-of-school youth. Lieberman said she supported allocations of $500,000 per year from 2007 – 2011 to Fast Forward and $400,000 for 2012 for a total of $2.9 million.

“If we can keep kids in school, they’ll be better prepared to enter the workforce,” Lieberman said. “If we can keep them in school, there is less chance they will get involved with the criminal justice system.”

Minimizing barriers keeping ex-offenders from getting hired will increase public safety by reducing recidivism, Lieberman said. She helped establish the county’s Office of Ex-Offender Reentry in 2010, funded with state and federal grants.

Webb’s job and workforce development plan

Wright Patterson Air Force Base has a $4.7 billion economic impact on the region, with about 29,000 military and civilian employees. Webb wants to entice those people to check out downtown Dayton housing and amenities. Vacant buildings in the city’s core also should be marketed to base contractors.

“We have to protect the mission at Wright-Patterson. We have to demonstrate our commitment to the base,” he said.

Webb’s calls for improvements to the corridor between the base and downtown Dayton.

“What we have now along the corridor are scrapyards and vacant buildings,” he said. “It’s kind of embarrassing.”

His vision would be a “respectable corridor” with prospering businesses. The project would be a joint effort between the cities of Dayton, Riverside and Montgomery County, he said.

“We would start small, repaving and putting up new signage. I’m not talking about investing a lot of dollars,” Webb said.

The county has focused too much of its development efforts around the Austin Interchange off Interstate 75 south of Dayton, at the expense of other parts of the county, Webb said. If elected, he would be the only commissioner from southern Montgomery County.

“What is supposed to be balanced, diversified and coordinated economic development seems pretty lopsided,” Webb said. “The impression is the focus is Austin Pike. “After attending their city council meetings, I’ve found it’s at sore subject with the people in Riverside and folks in Brookville.”

Webb, with community input, wants to re-evaluate the county’s four business focus areas.

“If we have priorities not fitting the marketplace, let’s set up a process to be where we need to be.” Webb said. “What areas can we put the most effort into to get the most benefit? I think it’s manufacturing.”

Webb said the county needs to become known as the place that has a workforce.

“If we develop the workforce, companies will migrate here,” said Webb, adding area colleges and universities could be a partner in the training.

Webb said he has visited numerous Dayton-area businesses during his campaign to learn what they need to grow.

“It surprised me to learn how many manufacturing companies have jobs available right now,” he said. “We need to fill those jobs. If we don’t, machines that are idyll because of a lack of qualified workers will be shipped out of the Miami Valley.”

When talking about job opportunities with college-age students, manufacturing needs to be on the list. A four-year college isn’t for everyone, he said.

“There are job options besides selling fast food and retail,” Webb said. “I will make it a priority to draw attention to manufacturing.”

Rebecca Darner of Oakwood, a self-employed consultant in the medical device field, said she’s been looking for a full-time job with benefits for more than a year. Darner said the Republican yard signs next to her house reflect who will get her vote.

“I think we need people in charge who know how to bring big businesses here. We are not replacing the jobs that are gone,” she said. “Vore and Webb want to get the county working again to enable people to lift themselves up.”

Webb criticized the commission’s economic development budget cuts, the office dedicated to selling Montgomery County.

“We’ll build the workforce and then we will market it,” Webb said. “The county should not have cut it’s economic development staff during a recession, a time we need folks attracting new business and keep existing businesses here.”

Webb - a member of the Ohio National Guard - said he would promote job training programs for county veterans.

“Veterans are a great pool. They’re disciplined and have a good work ethic. An investment in a veteran is as good as any.”